Different Beginnings
by LivelyStevens
Summary: VOTED BEST AU IN THE 2009 CSINY FANFIC AWARDS! Thank U! Lindsay comes to NY and interview with Mac, doesnt take job. Still meets Danny and the rest of the NY crew. COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

_This is kind of an AU fic. The only change is that Lindsay did not join the NYPD when she came to NY. She still meets Danny and the events of season 2 happen. Please let me know what you think._

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Lindsay Monroe loved New York City. In the five months that she'd been there, she's made a huge change in her life. She was hopelessly devoted to her job and the change she was making in the world. The people she worked with welcomed her in and treated her life family. The dedication and creativity she brought to the job was almost boundless. And, sure it was a thankless job, but she could read volumes of appreciates in the faces of those around her. Each day was different, nothing was mundane or routine and she was proud of what she did. The sun was shining and today promised to be just as exciting as the previous

***

He didn't know if anything he'd done this morning deserved this kind of treatment, but Danny Messer was seated on a cushioned bench in the main office of an elementary school waiting to talk to the principal. Sure he'd been in this position many times before, but that was twenty plus years ago. And yet, here he was in his early 30s waiting for the principal.

Looking around, he noticed how some things never changed. There was an older woman sitting behind a huge wooden desk that held the title of secretary. She looked like she should be someone's grandmother. She'd called him 'dear' when he entered the office. She was currently bandaging up the finger of a young boy who'd fallen on the playground and trying to calm him down.

He sat on the bench with his kit between his feet and his head leaning back against the wall. Wiping his sweaty palms on the legs of his jeans he tried to pinpoint exactly what had gotten him to this place.

He'd pushed Mac's buttons all morning in one way or another. Danny got to work 10 minutes late only to find out that he was supposed to meet Hawkes at a scene and not come into the lab. He tried to explain that he never for the message, but it wasn't working. Mac sent Stella to the scene when Hawkes called to report that Danny hadn't shown up. Mac wrote down an address on a slip of paper and handed it to Danny telling him to report to the principal's office.

He sat on the bench and tried to figure out which event he would change if he could, but it was no use. Nothing was going to change the fact that he was where he was, so he focused on the floor and counted the tiles. He laughed at his himself, counting the floor tiles was how he passed the time when he was younger and waiting for the principal or his mom to come get him from school. There were forty-two tiles on the floor at his old school.

***

Lindsay looked at the evidence in the latest crime and tried to see if the story made sense. She knew that things were going to be total chaos in about ten minutes with the other investigators got there and the questions started. Looking around at the scene she saw footprints, trace, a note and some finger prints. She knew each told a part of the story, now it just needed to be figured out.

***

"Detective Messer?" The secretary called.

"Yes, Ma'am?" He stood and answered just as he would have in his youth.

"Mr. Dozier will see you now." She pointed to a door that lead into an inner office.

"Thank you." He turned to go through the door she pointed at, pausing only long enough to announce his entry with a few quiet knocks on the door.

"Detective Messer, thank you for coming in." He motioned for the younger man to have a sear in one of the chairs in front of his head. "I hope that I wasn't too much trouble getting here."

"No, sir." His leg was bouncing from the nervousness due to his surroundings.

"We have an advanced 5th grade science and math class, the teacher uses real life to teach her lessons. They've been studying the science of crime for the past few weeks. She taught a unit on baseball before she started her current unit. That was awesome and the kids loved it." He paused lost in thought. "Anyway, they're at the end of their study and they wanted to show off what they could do. The teacher requested a NYPD crime scene investigator to come in." He paused again to write something down on a yellow sticky note, then stuck it to a copy of a map of the school, and he handed it to Danny.

As Danny took a look at the paper that was handed to him, Mr. Dozier picked up the phone and dialed a few numbers. "Morning…well almost afternoon. I have a Detective Messer here from the crime lab that I 'm going to send your way…he'll be there shortly." After a few words that closed the conversation he hung up. Danny grabbed his kit after shaking the other man's hand and went out into the hall to find the classroom.

Following the map, Danny could tell that he was only a few doors away. He looked down at the piece of paper one more time and a bell rang in the hall around him. The doors opened and students poured into the hall and surrounding him. He was used to being in crowds on the street, on the subway, and sometimes at crime scenes, but he was not used to being the tallest one, especially when Flack was around, but he was the tallest today.

Slowly moving to the side of the hall and then towards the room where he needed to be. He stepped into the doorway to watch the controlled chaos. Kids would pass him every few seconds to enter the classroom.

"Detective Messer?" A confident voice questioned from behind him.

He turned to see a woman about his age standing at a desk in a lab coat. She was looking down at her desk reading something. She must have caught him out the corner of her eye. She wasn't what he envisioned; actually she wasn't the aged science geek that he pictured in his head. She was really quite attractive, and in the lab coat, she looked like she should be working at the lab and not in an elementary school.

"That'd be me, Danny Messer. How ya doin'?" He made his way over to where she was standing to shake her hand. Finally looking up from her desk and approaching him, she looked at him from head to toe. A questioning expression fell upon her face.

He looked down at himself holding out his hands to see what she was looking at. "Wha, somethin' wrong?"

She was hesitant in her answer. "You are not what I was expecting, definitely what I was expecting." She was still looking, almost staring at him.

He laughed the smallest bit. "Okay, I'll bite, what were you expectin'?"

She met his eyes, "Shirt, tie, dark trench coat." She looked over him again, "Definitely not a t-shirt, jeans, and Cons." Looking one more time, she then turned away to greet her students.

Danny relaxed a bit and laughed again. "Um, yeah…the shirt and tie guy with the trench coat, that's my boss. Somehow I managed to get on his bad side this morning and here I am." He pushed his glasses up on his nose.

"So this is not where you want to be?" She teased, leaning up again her desk with a hand on her hip. Then the bell rang. "Ooo, saved by the bell." She turned to her students. "Hello everyone, please sit down." She looked back at Danny, who was moving to the side of the classroom and followed him. "Where is my brain, I'm Lindsay Monroe." She shook his hand and went back to starting her class.

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_Thank you for reading. Please review and let me know what you think. In the chapters to come, Lindsay meets Flack, Stella, Adam, and eventually the whole team. All the cases and events happen with a little bit extra thrown in. Please continue to read and enjoy it. _


	2. Chapter 2

"Alright guys, this is Detective Messer from the NYPD. He's a cop who solves crimes." She looked at Danny to affirm what she was saying. "He's here to see what you can do, let's not disappoint him." Danny waved a hand at those students who turned to look at him and then he turned his attention back to the front of the room. "When I came in this morning I found this." She turned around and raised a map that was covering the front board.

There was a note: "I've been noticing the class pet in your room. I didn't have one, so I took yours." The kids turned to look at the empty place on the counter where the class hamster usually say and then back at Ms. Monroe.

Before he knew it, the room went into motion. The kids congregated into small groups and were getting to work. One group was comparing the note on the board to samples of handwriting they had from people in the building. Another group was taking photos of clues and items they thought were important. One group was looking for prints and another was looking over the area where the cage was. The kids milled around and did their part in the investigation.

He watched the room and wondering if this is what he and his co-workers looked like at a scene. He was watching so closely that he didn't see two student approached. "Excuse us, but we need your shoe print. We need to eliminate you as someone who did this." Danny was appalled. How could they think he did this? He gave the prints. A few minutes later, when two kids came up to him with an ink pad and a cruelly printed 10 card, he just held out his hands. They expertly rolled his fingertips in the ink and made perfect prints. Before walking away, one of the students handed him a baby wipe for his fingers. As he was trying to get the ink off, he saw Ms. Monroe laughing at him.

Twenty minutes later Ms. Monroe called the class back to their seats. "Alright, what do we have?" Reports started coming in from around the room. Danny felt like he was back at work with what he was hearing.

"Handwriting closely matches three people in the building."

"Footprints in front of the cage are a size 8 woman's gym shoe."

"Fingerprints were too smudged to be usable."

"There was black powder left on the counter where the cage was."

Lindsay listened closely, as did Danny. "Okay, what is next"

"Cross reference the handwriting matches to anyone that wears a size 8 show, woman's of course and then try and figure out where the black powder fits in." Danny was too wrapped up to notice that he was the one who gave the answer.

"Thank you Detective Messer." The kids went back to work.

***

Mac looked at his watch later in the afternoon, trying to figure out what was taking Danny so long. He should have been back to the lab hours ago. Quickly he texted Danny to find out what was going on. He was surprised to get a message back from Danny saying that he was still at the school and that if Mac needed him, just call.

***

The classroom was quiet, the halls were quiet and the kids had gone home. Danny was still hanging around helping clean up and listening to Ms. Monroe explain what else the kids were working on during their unit. Tomorrow would be their test.

"That was amazing. I've seen a lot of things and that was…I mean I once knew this guy in the Bronx who could blow out a candle with his…"

"Det. Messer" Lindsay called hoping to stop his train of thought.

"Huh…oh, call me Danny. These kids found and processed the evidence and it led them to a suspect. The copy lady did it and those kids figured it out….Wow. That's a group of kids who won't be asking 'do you want fries with that.'" He shifted a bit in the small student desk. "Okay, your principal mentioned that you have taught baseball science and this. What else do you teach?"

She sat down in a student desk next to where he'd sat down and stretched his feet out. "I teach science and math through practical real life applications. We learn about animals, plants, sports, and science on the job. Crime science fit into that category." She pointed to the hamster cage that had been returned to the kids. "I'm either teaching tomorrow's CSIs or better criminals." Danny laughed at her last comment.

"What did you do with baseball?"

Lindsay rose from her place and retrieved a binder on a shelf in the back of the room. Returning, she set it on the desk in front of him. "We talked about friction, throwing a curve ball, reaction time when swinging at a ball." Lindsay flipped through the student made pages explaining all the topics she was talking about. The last page really caught his attention. He had no words and just pointed questioningly.

She very casually looked at what he was seeing. "Oh, that?" She rolled her eyes. "That's nothing." He was awestruck and staring at her expecting answers. "What?" She questioned. "We took a field trip to a Yankees game when we were done with our unit." She raised her shoulders trying to shrug it off. She could see how amazed he was at the photo.

"Yeah, but that's you and your class with _THE_ Yankees."

"We wrote them a letter about what we did and they invited us to a game. We were allowed to run the bases and got some pictures." She kept her tone light as if to say 'can't everyone do it?'

Danny started digging in his wallet for one of his cards. "You call me next time you go on one of these trips. I've lived here all my life and have never been that close." He handed her his card and then stared at the photo again. Closing the binder and sliding it back towards her he continued, "What other sports do you study?"

She thought for a minute and then started counting them off on her fingers. "Basketball, football, pool, and hockey."

"And you go on a field trip after each one?" She nodded." Yea, definitely call me, I'm there." He looked at his watch. "You teach pool? Do you shoot pool or just teach it?" He leaned up on his elbows.

"I've played before. It's been a while, but it's a game of physics, angles, and force." She got lost in thought. "Gosh, I haven't played since moving here."

"From where?"

"Bozeman, Montana. Born and raised, and until about five months ago, I worked there too." She stood to start closing things down for the day and getting ready for the next.

He was too busy thinking. "Would you come shoot a few games with me?" He had no idea what her situation as, but this was a good way to find out.

"Sure, what d'ya have in mind?"

He wrote down an address on a scrap of paper from a pad on her desk. "Tomorrow night okay, maybe around 7:30?"

"Sounds good."

He collected his coat and kit. "Thank you Ms. Monroe for allowing me to visit today. It was…" He nodded looking around the room remembering what he had seen. "..it was awesome. I feel like I might be out of a job soon with these guys coming up."

She laughed and placed a comforting hand on his arm. "Don't worry; they all want to play baseball after we went to that game." Her hand lingered a little longer than she planned, "and call me Lindsay."

"Until tomorrow night then, Lindsay." He left the room and walked down the hall.

She stepped into the hall to watch him go. To her surprise, he turned back to make eye contact. "He looked back."


	3. Chapter 3

"How'd Adam do after I left?" Flack asked.

"The tiger kept him on his toes, even though it was knocked out." Danny told his friend, moving around the table to set up the shot. "I don't know if Adam is going to be the right replacement for Aiden. I mean he's great to have in the lab, but I don't think that he's the type for field work."

Danny received a text from Lindsay stating that she was running late, but she'd be there.

Danny called Flack and he agreed to meet him for a game of pool, but Flack didn't know that someone else was coming in about 30 minutes. They were unwinding from the week and discussing their latest case.

"You got any leads?" Flack asked.

"We know that Parker was going to buy Venetti's building for apartments. Venetti ends up dead. The evidence tells us that Parker did it. Then Parker disappears and Mac questioned Angelo Venetti about it and we are at a dead end." Danny took his shot.

Both men were so caught up in the game that neither noticed Lindsay enter the bar and order a drink, then sit and watch them play. She wasn't running as late as she thought so she watched the two of them and how they played. She could already tell that Danny was going to win just by the way they played. She looked at her watch and noticed that it was about to make her presence known. Taking her glass, she approached the table.

"You gonna go easy on me detective?" She said announcing herself.

Before Danny could turn around Flack jumped on her comment. "Excuse me?" His eyes were wide, sleeves rolled up his arms and the first couple of buttons were undone. His drink had just about made it to his lips when she approached. "Do I know you?"

Danny still hadn't turned and was enjoying Flack's response. He stood and turned on his heel. "No, she knows me." He lost his voice when he came face to face with her. Gone was the lab coat from the classroom and she stood there in jeans and a t-shirt from a college he did not recognize. She looked relaxed and totally at ease. Looking her over, he found his voice. "Lindsay Monroe this is Don Flack, Detective Don Flack." He pointed in the direction over his shoulder. "Flack this is Ms. Lindsay Monroe." Flack leaned over the table to shake her hand.

"I told you I haven't played in a while. There was no reason for you to come out and practice." She walked closer to the table.

"Very funny." He gave her a look. "We were just about finished." She found a table close to the game and sat down.

Danny and Flack continued their conversation and their game. "We found no evidence at Parker's place that Ventetti was the one who took him or even where he is now." Flack studied the table while Danny stood near the table where Lindsay was. Danny finished the thought about the case being at a dead end.

"Whacha working on?" She sounded really interested.

"We had a body found at the zoo, tiger tore him up. Evidence has led us down a winding road of dead ends. One of the lab tech joined us on the scene because we are short an investigator and he could barely handle what the tiger had done to the vic." Danny saw Lindsay start to stare off into space at the mention of the case. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have mentioned…"

Her eyes came back info focus on him. "Why are you sorry? You don't think I can handle something like that?" She paused daring him to make a comment. "Have you ever seen what a full grown bear does to a man?"

"There not a lot of call for that here."

"I'm from Montana. It's happened. I've seen it." With her eyes she made sure he understood what she was saying. He raised his brow and took his turn at the table.

***

"I need another beer," a defeated Flack stated walking away from Danny and towards to bar. "You're up Monroe." He handed her the cue and walked away.

Danny was racking the balls when Flack returned and took a seat at the table, he settled in to watch the game. Being a gentleman, Danny let Lindsay break.

The game was pretty even. Lindsay missed a few shots and Danny was able to take a commanding lead. In the end it was Danny who sank the eight ball in a corner pocket. He stood at the opposite end of the table with a smog look on his face and leaning on his cue.

"Pretty good Montana," She cocked an eye at him, questioning the use of a nickname. He smiled at her even more. If only he'd stopped there, but no, "for a girl." He teased. She wanted to smack the smile off his face.

"How 'bout another game, maybe best two out of three?" She looked past Danny at Flack. "Do you mind?" He just shook his head.

Danny moved around her to set up the next game. Lindsay caught Flack's eye and gave him a wink and a grin. He had no idea what it was all about, but there was a feeling in the air that something was about to happen, and he wasn't about to miss it.

"Monroe, your break again." Danny called to her.

"Here we go." She said only loud enough for Flack to hear. She turned, approached the table, leaned in real low and set her first shot. Before letting the cue slide through her fingers, she glanced up and made hard eye contact with Danny…and smiled. In slow motion, the cue ball made contact with the yellow one ball and the balls exploded in different directions. Flack then watched Lindsay sink shot after shot. After each one she studied the table. The fourth ball missed its target.

"Danny you're up." He was sitting, pretending to be in a deep discussion with Flack, who was too busy watching the game.

"Huh…wha? Oh, I get to play?" He stood and studied the table. Flack sat back in his chair, laced his fingers behind his head and watched. Danny put two balls in pockets and missed his third.

Lindsay tried to slip between him and the table to take her shot. "Excuse me." Her voice rose on the last word, but he didn't budge. He let her squeeze between the two objects and felt every inch of her body against his as she slid by and it went straight to his head.

The ball she targeted hit the bottom of the pocket before Danny caught up. She was across the table from him bending over the table to sink her last ball before going after the eight. Giving him a wink, she flawlessly sank her shot.

With his hands propping him up on the edge of the table, he followed the black eight ball across the felt with his eyes. He hung his head as he heard it collide with the other balls in the pocket.

She moved right behind him, "Not bad for a girl, huh?" She went to the table to get a drink.

"Wow Mess. Country girl's got game." Flack proclaimed.

"Thank you, Detective Obvious." He focused on Lindsay. "Let me guess, that first game was just a warm up. You just needed to loosen up or somethin'?" He was gesturing to the table in front of them. "Where did you learn to play like that?"

"Home. There wasn't much to do during the week. I played a lot against my brothers and their friends. I got my first cue at age 10…but I have not played in months." She moseyed back around and behind him, stepping really close. "You ready to play that tie breaker?"

Turning to face her, he stood straight and tall in her space. "You wanna make this interesting?"

"I'm hurt." She pouted. "I thought I had already made this interesting, but if you want to make a bet then you might as well just give me your money. I'm gonna beat you." Hands went to her hips.

"Pretty sure of yourself there. Fine, if I win, you have dinner with me." They were still standing close, neither had moved.

Her eyes moved around like she was thinking. She pondered all the things that she could as for if she won. Lindsay wanted to make him squirm while she was thinking. For a moment longer she thought. "And if I win, we see a movie afterwards."

He wasn't ready for that response and it took a few moments for him to realize that she was already racking. "Danny, it's your break because I think I won that last game." She put a finger to her chin as if to think. "Yep I did." She patted him on the cheek before leaving him to start the game.

"Messer, I like this girl." Flack interjected.

"Yeah, you would." His hit the cue ball and the sound of the balls moving around the table ended their short conversation.

From that point Flack was forgotten by the two of them, but he watched every move they made. If he was called to testify in a court of law in front of a jury about what he saw over the next forty-five minutes, he would have to swear on a stack of Holy Bibles that it was one of the best and most entertaining games he had ever seen.

Danny's break didn't pocket anything so Lindsay stepped up. They would each pocket a couple of balls and then miss. Flack would have to swear that he thought it was on purpose. He watched his best friend and Lindsay dance around each other. And after a lot of sabotage, cheating, innocent flirting and some great shots there were three balls left on the table, one for each and the black eight.

They'd miss by millimeters and then yield to the other player.

"Come on…you guys have been knocking around the same three balls for the last…" Flack looked at his watch, "ten minutes. Finish this."

Danny met Lindsay on the far side of the room. "Why haven't you hit your shots?" She whispered.

"I am not going to lose the change a dinner and a movie with you. Why haven't you hit your shots?" He told her.

"I've been enjoying the company. But you don't have to lose for us to go out, we can get dinner and catch a movie even if I lose, but that won't happen." Her confidence said more than the words. "Let's finish this." She walked around him and hit her last two shots dead on.


	4. Chapter 4

_Thank you so much for all the wonderful reviews. It lets me know people are actually reading. Here we go again. Enjoy._

***

Their date had been set and cancelled twice. Hours before she was supposed to meet him, he would call and reschedule because of a case he was working. He'd given her sparse details the first time about oil company executives, martial arts and murder while trying to apologize at the same time. She could hear the disappointment in his voice, but she told him it was okay and they set it up for another night. He called a few days later mumbling something about elementary schools, sandboxes and sword fish and again he apologized and they decided on another time for them to meet. After each call she would watch the news and read the newspapers to see if the cases he was working on were being covered.

***

"Adam." Danny boomed as he entered the trace lab. "Mac said to find you here. What d'ya got?" Adam stood over a table with various objects scattered across it.

"We got an iPod, chopsticks, glove, bloody shoe print and a missing low penetration projectile weapon. What do you want first?"

"Chopsticks."

***

He was searching for information about the restaurant that the chopsticks came from on the internet, the name of the restaurant was written down the side. He picked up his phone and sent a text to Lindsay. He already felt bad about pushing their dinner off a few hours until he could get out, but it looked like he was going to have to cancel again. His schedule was always changing and she never seemed put off by the changes it made to their plans. But he felt awful. It felt to him like there could be something there, but they never had the chance to be together. It had been almost ten days since they played pool with Flack and the only talking they had done since then was to chance their plans when he was stuck at work.

"Hey Danny?" Stella knocked on the open door to the office.

"Stella, whacha need?" He swiveled in his chair to face her. He noticed she was fidgeting with her fingers.

"Does Flack have a new girlfriend?"

"Huh…what…you lost me." The comment totally caught him off guard.

"Does Flack have a new girlfriend?" Her words were precise and clearly spoken.

She had his total attention now. "Not that I know of, why you interested?" He cocked his head to one side waiting for an answer.

Obviously, she avoided the question. "He's sitting in the break room with someone I've never seen before and I didn't know if he'd been seeing anyone."

Danny looked at the computer screen to start working again, but curiosity got the best of him. Out of his chairand rounding his desk, he and Stella headed towards the break room. Flack's laughter filled the halls before they turned the last corner. Then he heard a familiar voice start talking.

"…And then we went down to the field to run the bases. The kids were so excited." The two new comers to the conversation stopped in the doorway to listen. "They players came out of the locker room and took some pictures with us. You should have seen Danny's face when he saw the photo of all of us."

"Monroe, stop bragging about your connections with the Yankees." Her face lit up like a sunrise at the arrival of Danny. It didn't go unnoticed to Flack or Stella.

"Stella, this is Ms. Lindsay Monroe, teacher extraordinaire. Lindsay this is Stella Bonasera, Detective First Grade and one of my supervisors. Lindsay and I were going tonight for dinner, but the elevator shooting made me push it off and then cancel our plans…again." He noticed the bags of take out on the table. "So obviously, she got dinner to go and is enjoying it with Flack." His statement had a questioning tone to it.

Don looked at Danny and rolled his eyes. "She was signing in downstairs, Messer, as I was heading out for the night. I escorted her up. She got some message about her dinner date being caught at work for a third time because of a dead body. She thought she might bring him dinner instead. She was just telling me about the Yankees trip she took last month."

"You brought me dinner?" He was touched.

"I hope it's okay. I figured you'd been out on a scene earlier, now you're waiting for results on some test you ran or you're doing research, your shift probably was extended a few hours, and you probably haven't stopped to eat. My plans for the evening got cancelled, so here I am. No big deal."

"Thank you." Flack and Stella faded out of the room and down the hall towards her office. Danny sat down at the table and looked through the cartons. "Chinese?"

"I guessed."

Taking a pair of chopsticks from one of the bags he tried to hold them right. "I processed a set of chopsticks earlier that had paper wedged between them and a rubber band wrapped tightly around one end. Chopsticks for dummies."

Lindsay picked up a pair, held them properly and started eating, smiling as she did. "mmm…mmm…mmm"

"Show off. I got tickets to a basketball game Saturday night, you wanna come with me?"

"You working earlier that day?" She asked pointedly, staring him in the face.

He looked around with his eyes trying to figure out if it was a trick question. "Um…no."

"You on call?"

"No. But I am on Sunday, why?"

"I just wanted to make sure that I wouldn't be getting a phone call between not and then cancelling. I have to cover my bases before I accept, but it sounds good."

***

Down the hall Don and Stella entered her office. "Flack who is Lindsay Monroe?" She asked settling into her chair."

"Lindsay is the teacher that Mac sent Danny out to visit. She teaches science and math. Mac was supposed to go, but he sent Danny went instead. The night after his visit, she came out to play pool with us. Stella, she wiped the floor with him. I've never seen anyone play him the way she did. And the banter they threw back and forth…"

Flack filled her in on the three games of pool he watched them play, the comments they threw at each other and the bet Danny lost. Stella loved it.

***

Danny and Lindsay talked about the weather, a few cases, her students, and really nothing of real consequence while joking around with each other. Their fingers brushed slightly a few times as they ate. His leg would nudge against hers and hers against his.

Adam came in to find Danny. "I've been watching the security tape from the lobby at the elevator shooting, I need to run some things by you…oh sorry." He noticed Lindsay for the first time.

"Adam Ross, this is Lindsay Monroe. Lindsay, this is Adam, he's one of our forensic lab rats and he's been getting out in the field some lately."

Adam waved. "Adam, I will be there in a minute." And the younger man backed out of the room.

"I should go help him out." He motioned to the retreating man.

"Yes you should. I need to get home; it's getting late and I have school tomorrow." She started packing up everything and clearing the table. Danny reached across the table and stilled her hand with his. Her eyes met his in question.

"Thank you for bringing me dinner." He brought her knuckles to his lips.

At the elevator he thanked her again. "Text me when you get home, lots of nuts running around this city at night."

"You included?" She raised a brow at him.

He chuckled, "Me included."

The doors opened, she stepped in. "Night Montana." And the doors closed. The evening's events played in his mind. She made an impression, not something many women did in his life. Smiling, he stepped away, renewed and ready to finish up with Adam.

***

"So how do we ID the mystery woman?" Danny asked.

"Her iPod played songs from the musical 'Wicked' over and over." Adam told him.

"The paper in the chopsticks said something about an…" his phone went off. "…audition. Hang on Adam."

He read the message. "I found all the nuts. They live between the lab and my apartment. I'm home, the doors and locked. Now get back to work."


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you so much for your wonderful words. Please keep reading and reviewing. I have a lot of this ready to be typed and published. I need to know if I need to keep going.

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Leaning against the back of her apartment door Lindsay heard Danny's footsteps fade down the hall and the elevator whisk him away. Sliding down to the floor she wanted to squeal in delight, but she quickly remembered that she had neighbors and did not live in the country anymore.

_Danny showed up at ten til six. She buzzed him in and unlocked the door before going to finish getting ready. His knocks came quickly._

"_It's open." She called_

"_Hello?"_

"_I'll be right out."_

"_Are you nuts? You can't do that here. I could have been a psycho."_

_She came rushing out dressed much the same way as the night they played pool. "Really, you still could be. I really don't know you that well"_

"_True, you ready?"_

"_Let's go."_

_**_

"_Tell me about home." The game had been going on for a while. It was early in the season and there was really nothing exciting about the game. She was too busy deep in thought and did not hear him. "Linds, you alright?"_

"_Huh…yeah, just watching the game." She said trying to cover._

"_Its half time, has been for a few minutes. You alright?"_

"_Yeah, what were you asking?" She shifted to look at him._

"_Tell me about home."_

"_Home?"_

"_Montana." It was strange, she hadn't thought of Montana as home for a few weeks. She was quickly becoming a city girl._

"_wheatfields, ranches, small town, country life. Typical cliché of cowboys and overalls, cattle and horses."_

"_Sounds like a bad country song." He laughed. "What do you miss the most?"_

"_Mom's Sunday dinners, stars and wide open spaces." Her eyes got sentimental at the thought. "Tell me about home."_

"_This is my home." He held his arms out. "I grew up with noise. I don't know what quiet or a wide open space is. Home is Mommy, Dad, Louie, my brother, and lots of extended family members all over the city. The city was my playground. This is my home." The horn blew starting the second half. "When are you going back to visit?"_

"_Christmas, its just a month and a half away. I call home at least once a week, I really don't miss anything that bad. I've been so busy exploring the city, that homesickness hasn't set in."_

"_Whacha seen so far?"_

"_On Sautrdays, I usually take a Grayline tour. I've seen the Statue of Liberty, Uptown, Downtown, Brooklyn, Ellis Island and I even took a haunted and mysterious New York tour."_

"_You'll never see it all. Ive lived here all my life and I still run into the strange and unusual on a weekly basis."_

_She was intrigued. What could someone who has been here all his life. "Really like what?"_

"_I've investigated 700 hundred feet below New York streets, bondage classes, human statues, meaning wearing diamond bras, cuddle parties, tigers at the zoo, corporate kung fu fighters…"_

_Lindsay was amused by the wide spectrum of things that he'd been witness to, but she had to ask. "Cuddle parties."_

_He groaned. "Out of all the things I mentioned, you want to know about that. Um…okay, Stella and I were investigating the murder of a blind woman and one of the places that it took us was to a cuddle party. He shifted a bit to mimic her position and face her better. "We stood in an entry way and watched twenty men and women in a 'puppy pile,'" he air quoted, "kiss and touch each other. We talked to Ira Finklestein…no Feinstein, he was the cuddle caddy. He told us the rules and said that people who had a good time were to send a cuddlemonium."_

_Lindsay was having fits by the time he got to the end of his story. "Puppy piles and cuddlemoniums." Another wave of giggles did her in._

"_Laugh it up." _

_**_

_They walked to the subway after the last buzzer. There were post game crowds heading for the trains and Danny took her hand to keep from losing her. They stood near the front of the first car. He braced himself for the ride with one hand and reached for her with the other just before the train jerked into motion. Her held her close and she enjoyed the contact. He down at her and then out the front window. _

_Her stop came too soon, but she was pleasantly surprised when he found a reason to keep contact with her. He guided her out of the train with a hand on the small of her back and then took her hand in his when they reached the sidewalk above._

_Junk food at the game left them hungry and Danny suggested a 24 hour diner around the corner from her place for a burger. They talked for a couple more hours. He told her more about the people he worked with. She lived listening to him. She asked random questions, just to hear him tell the answers. As the night went on, he accent thickened and his words started to slur._

"_Danny walk me home, its late, I'm getting tired and you're starting to get that way." He started to argue, but she put a hand up. "Nope, don't try."_

_He paid the bill and then stepped out onto the now quieter street. He stuck his hands into the pockets of his jacket and offered out his arm. She curled around is and into his side. In perfect step they began the walk to her building. _

_**_

"_Thank you. I had fun." Their walk had brought them to the front of the building. _

"_Fun enough to do it again?" She smiled. "Soon?"_

"_Definitely." They entered the elevator._

"_I still owe you dinner and a movie."_

"_Okay, when and where?"_

"_Can I make you dinner one night?"_

_She faced him. "Can you cook?"_

"_Messer family recipe for Spaghetti."_

_They had been out a few times, he's been a perfect gentleman each time. She'd been to his work and met his friends. The doors of the elevator opened and out they stepped onto her floor._

"_Tell you what, you make dinner, I'll bring the movie."_

"_I think that could work, but nothing too girly. What night is good for you?"_

"_Doesn't matter."_

"_Really, you sure?" He brought his gaze down to her level to make sure. "Okay, I work an early on Wednesday. I'm out by five. Meet me at my place around six? Should get you home early enough."_

"_Sounds good, this is me."_

"_Night Montana." And he kissed her…on the forehead, wrapping his arms around her._

"_Send me a message when you get home." Leaning into his touch. "There are a lot of crazies in this city."_

"_You included?"_

"_Yes, now go. I'll see you Wednesday." Reluctant to let go, he slowly moved away and down the hall._

_**_

She got the message while still sitting against the door. She didn't realize that she'd been sitting there that long.

"Montana, I'm home, safe and sound, door are locked. See you soon. D-"

She let out a contented sigh and her heart beat a little faster.

"Good night and sweet dreams."

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	6. Chapter 6

There were days that he hated his job, mostly when he was in hot water with Mac, that's not what happened on Wednesday. The team pulled at least doubles, not one or two of them, all of them. A crazy from Miami came in and killed four kids and ran amok in the city and if it weren't for Lindsay's words of encouragement and understanding of his job, he would have quit when the day was over. Their dinner would have to be moved again. She offered to bring him something to eat again, but he told her "no, things were too crazy."

"Let me know if you need anything." Was her reply.

For the next few days, they swapped e-mails and text messages.

**

Saturday morning was crisp for November. Lindsay skipped her Grayline tour and took a walk in Central Park. The trees had mostly lost their leaves and the ground was blanketed in fall colors. She loved the shuffle sound they made when she walked. Bundled under her hat and scarf she walked for a while. She noticed a small group of people standing around. Curious about what was happening, she approached. She imagined a street performer or a musician, maybe a sidewalk chalk artist…then she saw. There was a young woman laying face down in the leaves. A man with a camera moved around taking pictures of the body. From her left another man approached and stepped under the tape.

"G-morning." He greeted.

Lindsay rolled her eyes when she realized that it was Danny. Out of all the dead people in New York he had to show up at this one. She sounded like an old movie. She watched Danny and the other man discuss who she was, time of death and then process the body. 45 minutes passed and then the body was rolled away and they were packing up their kits.

"Excuse me Detective, is this what I have to do to see you, chase reports of DBs in the city?" She let Danny know she was there.

"Montana, what are you doing here?" He pulled his gloves off and approached her.

"I was trying to enjoy a nice walk in the park but stumbled onto your scene." She motioned to the leaving ME's van. "What's it lookin' like?"

"Don't know, the rain washed away a lot of our evidence. We'll have to wait for the ME's report. We still on for dinner tonight?"

"Would you rather we hit some place when you have a break?" She questioned

"Danny you ready to head back to the lab?" Hawkes walked up behind Danny. "This a witness from last night?"

"No this beautiful woman is a very good friend of mine and I was just verifying that we were still on for dinner and a movie tonight. Lindsay this is Sheldon Hawkes. Sheldon used to be our ME, but he decided he liked life in the field and transferred a few months ago. Sheldon this is Lindsay Monroe." Hawkes reached across the tape and shook her hands and raised his brow.

"This is Lindsay?" He asked Danny and received a nod as a reply. "It's nice to finally meet you. He will be at dinner tonight, because if I have to hear him complain one more time about how bad he feels for canceling, someone will be processing his body after I kill him. Nice to meet you." He went back to packing things up.

"Sounds like our dinner is still on. See you at six?"

"I'll be there."

****

"So that was Lindsay?" Hawkes asked in the truck on the way back to the lab.

"Yep." Not sharing anymore than he needed to.

"You making her dinner tonight?"

"Yep." He still had to hit the market on the way home for the ingredients.

"Messer family recipe for Spaghetti.?"

"Yep again." As if her would make anything else.

"You bringing the leftovers to work."

"You know they would spoil if I left them in my fridge."

"I love being up in the lab."

**

Lindsay was staring at Danny, how could she not? He answered the door in jeans and a green t-shirt that fit him just right. It showed off his broad shoulders and how strong his arms really were. A dish towel was thrown over his shoulder and he was barefoot. He kissed her quickly on the cheek before turning back to the kitchen. His scent hung in the air in front of her along with the smell of the spaghetti sauce. Following her nose, she sat at the kitchen counter to watch him work. But watching wasn't the right word for what she was doing. She was staring. He was downright graceful in the kitchen. No motions wasted. He glided from the counter to the stove, stove to the sink, sink to the oven. The sauce simmered on the stove, water was boiling for the pasta next to it, bread was sitting ready to go into the oven. It looked and smelled delicious. He stood across the counter with a knife in his hand and was expertly slicing and chopping vegetables for a salad. She watched the rhythm of the knife as it cut; saw the focus on his face. It was beautiful. She rested on her elbows and just stared.

"Grab the plates and silverware; take them out to the living room. We're gonna eat on the coffee table. Get the movie and set it up." H pointed out his directions with the knife in hand.

It was the first good look she had at his apartment. The living room was dominated by a pool table and motorcycle. But on the far end of the room there was a TV, coffee table, and couch. Family photos were scattered around and various books.

She waited through the FBI warning in both English and French for the DVD menu to come up. Returning back to the kitchen, she got the bread and salad off the counter and went back to the living room.

**

"Godzilla, out of all the movies you could have chosen, you picked Godzilla."

"Back home, we watched it when it came out, but now that I live here. I want to watch it again. Plus it fit your criteria, it's not too girly." She fixed a plate and hit play.

"But they destroy the Garden at the end." He whined like a five year old who was just told to eat his vegetables.

"It's just a movie."

"But those animals are just evil."

"How about we go for a ride," she pointed to his bike, "sometime soon and make sure your precious Garden is okay."

"I guess I can handle that." The opening credits continued to play. They ate in silence during the first part of the movie, but as soon as the first scene with New York started the silence was broken by Danny.

"World Trade Center." He whispered.

"I know; the skyline looks weird with them standing there."

"Not weird. To me, it's a memory of what was."

The movie played with Danny commenting about locations, groaning when building got smashed, and laughing in general.

5th Avenue and Madison." She blurted. "Even I know where that is." She stated proudly.

Just before Matthew Broadrick decided to feed Godzilla fish, Danny paused the movie. "Let's clean this up real quick, then we can finish the movie."

**

"Oh, that is just not right." He whined as the scoreboard was spotted down in the subway. For the rest of the movie he whimpered about everything. From her spot, snuggled into his side, she tried not to laugh at him too hard. She just listened to him complain about Madison Square Garden being taken over by giant lizards.

Don't worry, we'll go and see it really soon. She hugged him tighter across his waist. Every so often he would squeeze her tighter to him and kiss the top of her head.

The credits rolled but she didn't move. You got something else to watch, I don't want to move."

"I will find something, because I would hate to make you get up." He scrolled through all the options. "Day After Tomorrow or Ghostbusters?"

"I see a pattern here, more New York movies? Um…Day After Tomorrow." She pulled the blanket off the back of the couch and wrapped it around her.

**

She was asleep, he could tell by the even deep breathing and the face that she hadn't moved, even when the end credits rolled. He say there and held her. It felt good to hold her while they slept. He knew about the reputation everyone thought he had. Meet a girl, date a few times, maybe sleep with her and then move on. To many he was a player. He hadn't had time lately to go out. Cases were heavy and shifts were long. With the down time that he had, it was nice to have Lindsay to hang out and talk with instead of chasing something new that might not go further than a few drinks. Tonight it felt good to sit and hold her. Just a month ago he was visiting her classroom and here she was asleep on his couch in his arms. Leaning his head back, he drifted off listening to the soft jazz of the Weather Channel.

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	7. Chapter 7

Everyone warned Lindsay about the "big city." "Watch out for 'this and that,'" they said. "The crime is awful" they said. But that wasn't the New York she found. The teachers and staff at her school quickly became a second family for her. Everything she in August and September revolved around her school and the kids. And then Danny walked through her door, literally, and opened the rest of the city up for her. Sure the Graylines were great, but they were so impersonal. He gave the city personality.

**

Lindsay was gone. There was no petite body keeping the left side of his body warm anymore and his arms were empty. That was the only thing Danny was aware of when he woke up. She was no longer wrapped up and curled into his side. The spot she occupied was cold, she'd been gone a while. Finding the clock on top of the TV, he saw that it was after 9, but not by much.

He shuffled into the kitchen, stretching his back and scratching the side of his head. He let out a huge yawn as he made it into the kitchen looking for caffeine. A note was propped against the coffee pot. Her perfect teacher hand writing greeted him.

"Good Morning Messer, I'm an early riser even on the weekends. I left around 7. I didn't want to wake you up. Thank you for dinner last night and for being the best stand-in for a pillow. I hope we can do it again sometime soon."

His mood changed in the seconds it took to read the note. Showered and dressed, he called and made plans to ride up and see Madison Square Garden around noon.

**

"There it is, do you feel better now?" She took a bite of the hot dog in her hand. Once they reached their destination and he kissed the sidewalk, she suggested they get lunch.

"Linds, I'm still telling you that movie was just wrong."

"They destroyed the city in Armageddon. Does that movie bother you?"

"Nope, didn't bother me."

"Ghostbusters?"

"Nope."

"Just when they blew up this place in Godzilla?" She threw a thumb over the shoulder

"Yep."

"You're nuts." He got an eye roll.

"And you're hanging out with me."

"I am making sure that you don't hurt yourself, sweetie."

"Wiseass." When she laughed at him, the world became brighter, it was music to his ears. "You wanna ride around some more?"

"Do you want me to wrap my arms around you and hold on tight while you take the long, scenic route to get to wherever we are going?" Words of denial were on the tip of his tongue but he had no chance to use them. "Don't think I didn't notice all the extra miles we covered just to get here."

"Busted." He said under his voice.

"Yeah, busted, not that I mind any. I just like giving you a hard time. She shoots and scores." The garbage from lunch hit the trash can perfectly. "And the crowd goes wild."

"How are your kids?"

"They ask about you. They want to know if you are coming to the game with us, Monday after Thanksgiving."

"Tell them no one has asked me yet."

Detective Messer" She almost yelled and stepped in front of him, stopping his progress down the sidewalk, putting her hand over her heart, "my students and I would like to know you would you join us," she was dramatically waving her arms wildly as she spoke, "for a class trip to the Giants game the Monday after Thanksgiving." She froze like a statue with her arms spread out wide.

"You about finished with your little show there?" He tapped her nose with his finger and pulled back a bit, "Yes I would love to go." They started walking again. "You going home for Thanksgiving?"

"No, break's not long enough to make the trip worth it. I'm going to wake up and go to the parade and then meet some friends from school for a potluck dinner. I thought I might even brave some of the 'Black Friday' sales. You working?"

"No, I'll go to my parents. But I want you to come over Friday after shopping for a Christmas movie marathon. I do it every year the weekend after Thanksgiving."

"I'll call when I'm on my way, now what about the rest of that ride around town?"

**

She hated the sight of her building; it was getting bigger and bigger as he drove closer and closer. Her arms tightened around him for the hundredth time and her thighs squeezed him a bit more. She was already as close to him as she could get. It was head spinning to hold onto him this tight. They'd stop at a light and he'd lean back into her and hold onto the arms around him.

The sight of her building meant the ride and their time for now was coming to an end.

"That was nice." He leaned back into her once again after the motor was shut off.

"Anything to ease your pain and suffering brought on by a movie." Laughing at him, she stood up.

"So I will see you Friday?" She was standing really close and had her fingered laced with his as he sat on his bike.

"That's the plan, come comfortable."

"Okay." Without thinking she leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his lips. She realized what was happening only when her lips met his.

**

"I'm home, safe and sound and the doors are locked." She smiled at the message that was becoming routine to them. "See you Friday." She sent back and touched the spot where his lips had been.

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Love, hate...Let me know. Please hit the button below and review. I live for them.


	8. Chapter 8

"It's Turkey Day, do you know where Montana is?" She sent him.

"Somewhere out west between Idaho and the Dakotas?"

"No, Central Park West and 73rd. And around 4AM I was up about five blocks watching them inflate the balloons. It was cool. Took lots of pictures for the kids. I'm cold." Lindsay told him. She was so cold. It would take days to thaw out from standing out in this weather.

"Poor baby, I tried to call, must be noisy there." She checked her phone: '2 missed calls.'

"It is, where are you?" Probably in his warm apartment or at his mom's house, which would be warm. What was she thinking when she decided to come out to the parade?

"Couch, in front of the TV, but I left my coffee in the kitchen." She could see him sprawled out completely on the couch remote in one hand and phone in the other.

"Poor Baby. What are we watching tomorrow?" A cold wind whipped around the corner of the building behind her and stung her eyes and chilled her to the bone.

"Elf, Scrooged, Christmas Vacation, Grinch, Gremlins, Bad Santa, Die Hard."

"Wow, that's quite a collection. Can I bring anything?" Hot chocolate, coffee, hot tea, blankets, extra layers? Think warm, think warm. She started to bounce on her toes to try and produce heat.

"Just you."

"See you tomorrow, the parade is starting," Lindsay heard a band count off in the distance and the drum beat start.

"I'll be here."

**

"You up?" Her message asked at 10:30 the next morning.

"No."

"Alright, Call me when you wake up." She turned and went the opposite direction. Then her phone rang.

"Hello?"

"I'm up, I'm up. How shopping? Find any good sales?" She loved catching him when he was waking up. His voice was smooth and deep.

"I slept in. I got up so early yesterday morning and then stayed out way too late with that group from school. Is it too early to come over?"

"Naw, come on." No sooner had the words left his lips that there was a knock on the door.

"Good, because I'm here. Let me in."

"Not by the hair of my chiny chin chin." He unlocked the series of locks on the back of his door.

The woman on the other side was a vision in sweatpants and a t-shirt, phone still in her hand. She passed him and set the bags on the counter. "Something's been on my brain for the past few days. I've enjoyed spending time with you. I've enjoyed the friendship and flirty thing we have going on. But if I overstepped last week with that kiss…"

His lips met hers, shutting her up. It wasn't anything earth shattering and it mimicked the kiss she laid on him the previous week. "I was surprised by you last week, you had the guts to do what I couldn't. I've enjoyed spending time with you and the friendship flirty thing we have going here. I wanna see where it goes."

"Okay then." She process what she had just been told. "What are we watching?"

"I'm already in the middle of Gremlins. Fridge is fully stocked with drinks and snacks. We are ordering pizza for lunch and my Ma sent enough leftovers for dinner. I told her to pack extra because you were coming over. That was a good half hour interrogation and I hope that I never go through that again. You're invited to Sunday dinner by the way, whenever I go."

**

The day was cut into chunks defined by when a movie started and ended. Between movies they'd refill drinks, get more snacks and switch positions. Afternoon came and she was lying with her head on his chest and the back of the couch behind her. Bad Santa was playing, but it really wasn't her type of movie. Arms held her close and sleep came so easily.

**

"Hey Sleeping Beauty." She blinked open her eyes to his soft words. He had to have been watching her to notice the moment when she stirred from sleep.

"What time is it?"

"Almost five, did you have a good nap?"

"Mmm…yeah." She stretched her body out against him and like the night at the pool table when she passed between him and the pool table, he felt every movement and it made him dizzy to have her moving like this against him. Holding her closer to him, he kissed the top of her head.

His stomach growled in hungry protest. "You ready for dinner?"

"I could eat."

**

Their plates were piled with food, but not just any food, home cooked Thanksgiving dinner food. Turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and rolls. And there was still stuff left on the counter in Tupperware containers.

"This is so good. Your mom invited me to Sunday dinners, right?" She took another bite.

"Yeah."

"Do I have to wait for you to go? I haven't had a good home cooked meal in a while." He eyeballed her. "Other than when you made spaghetti. If I could get this once a week, I may go without ya."

"I'd love to see that. 'Hi, I'm Danny's girlfriend, where's the food?'" He teased.

"Don't tempt me." She took another bite. "What d'ya do this week?" She hoped he would talk for a while so that she could truly enjoy the food.

"I found another place in this city I didn't know existed." She raised her brow in question. "There was this doll hospital…"

She covered her full mouth with her hand. "Was?"

"The doc was murdered…" He went into telling her about the set up of the hospital, and the description naturally went into the investigation. She watched and listened as he perfectly described the scene, each little detail, how he process the evidence and the outcome.

"I'm boring you." He saw the glazed look in her eyes.

"No, not at all. I have a background in science, it's nice to see someone putting it to good use to make the city a better place to be, plus you get so focused when you talk about you job. You really love doing it."

"Yeah…I do." He stared at her and thought about his job.

She broke the intense eye contact and started cleaning up dinner. Tupperware containers were back in the fridge, she wiped down the counter and then turned to fill the dishwasher.

"What are you doin'? You don't gotta do that."

"I was taught that if you show someone a little respect you might get more than what you came for." It was also just habit for her to put her dishes in the dishwasher as soon as she finished with them.

"Really, what did you come here for?" He teased, wasting no time to approach her and hold her around the waist.

"What does it matter?" She took his plate and put it in with hers.

"So that I can give you more."

**

"It's getting late, so you have a choice." She looked toward windows without getting up. She hadn't noticed how dark it was outside or the fact that they were on their seventh movie. "Either I take you home now or you stay here."

"I kinda like where I'm at." She was stretched out against him again, head on his shoulder. "Do you mind if I stay this way?" She rolled her head around getting more comfortable.

"I wouldn't have offered."

**

Danny fell asleep before Lindsay did. It gave her the chance to enjoy holding him. His face was so relaxed, boyish. She wanted to reach up and run the tips of her fingers across his lips, chin, cheeks, eyelids. She pulled her hand back just before they made contact and laid her arm across his stomach under the blanket. His chest rose and fell with each breath. The rhythm was hypnotic to watch from her spot on his shoulder. His arm was holding her securely in place, she was warm and content in his embrace. Hey eyes closed, she drew a breath…and memorized the moment.

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Coming attractions!!! Next chapter mentions the panic room from Trapped.


	9. Chapter 9

_I am amazed at the outpouring of great comments. Thank you and keep them coming. _

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It was game night with Lindsay and the kids and Danny was running late. Danny called her asking that she leave his ticket at the box office. He'd meet her inside as soon as he could, but every step he took towards leaving the lab sent him back two.

Kick off took place as he arrived at the stadium and he hated that. But when he got to the section where the kids were sitting all that mattered to them was that he showed up.

"Detective Messer." The first student noticed and then it was chaos. Each student gave him a high five or hug. He finally made it to Lindsay and not knowing how to greet her, he just leaned in for a hug, and was calmed by the contact after the long day he's had.

"I think they're happy to see you." She pointed at her students as they all settled back into their seats.

"No kidding, ya think?" He quipped. Lindsay pulled out her phone, punched some number and put it back into her pocket. His phone went off moments later.

Checking the text he read "Wiseass."

He watched her in teacher mode, explaining things to the kids when they asked about the game: angles of throws and kicks, the reason the ball spirals when they throw it, the laws of motion when a player tackles another. When the first quarter ended, she told the kids it was time to just watch and enjoy the game. It's amazing how much someone can teach while watching a football game. The adults were even learning a few things.

It got colder and she sat closer. Families said their good byes and left. Only die hard students and their families remained with Danny and Lindsay until the end of the game. They didn't talk much, too busy with the game and trying to stay warm.

"So which was colder, the parade or this?" He asked walking to the exit.

"Parade." Inching closer, as if it were possible, trying to warm up.

"Come on, I'll give you a ride home."

**

"You're great with the kids, how did you get into teaching?" They walked arm and arm down the street from where he parked his bike.

"Um…I worked as a scientist in a lab for awhile, but got tired of it. I had most of my education degree finished. Thinking that I might need a change, I moved to New York, did a few interviews and got my job teaching."

"No way this is your first year." He was shocked at the idea. "And you already have it in with the Yankees and maybe now the Giants. You network quickly."

She ignored him and carried on with her train of thought. "I'm finishing my degree at the end of this school year. Until then I am teaching on a waiver." She filled in.

"This is your first year. You made it seem like you've been doing this a while. What made you think you needed a change?"

I needed to move on and away from where I grew up. I didn't want to be there my whole life. It's the kind of town where everybody knows everybody. I was ready to get away from that." Among other things that she wasn't ready to talk about. There would be a time for all that, but not tonight.

"New York is the best place to get lost in."

"Or found." She took his hand in hers.

**

December became a very busy very quickly. Lindsay used every minute to close out the semester both at her school and in her studies. She met Danny for a bite to eat every so often, but then had to leave to finish school work.

He pulled case after case. His hours were long and the work tedious.

**

She was in the back of the classroom observing a test when she heard the sound of a phone beep. Looking around, she did not notice any of the kids looking at a phone or hiding one. As she passed through the rows she heard it again and realized it was her phone buried in the bottom of her bag. She dug through pens, pencils, M&Ms, coins, and just about anything else before she found her phone.

The two messages were from Danny and that concerned her. He knew her hours and usually never bothered her at her job.

"Hey." Was the first message. "You got a minute?" was the second. Going to the back of the room she leaned again a book case where she could keep an eye on the kids.

"What's up?" She sent to him curious as to why he would contact her, but nothing came back for a few minutes.

"I'm stuck." Was his reply.

"Call Flack." She told him. "I'm teaching."

"He's here with me."

"That's cozy."

"Ha ha. I'm stuck in a windowless room, the door just shut and locked. Flack and Stella are on the outside trying to get me out. I'm in here with a dead guy."

"You kill him?"

"No."

"Okay, what's going on?"

"Panic room closed w/me and dead guy in it. 13 hours to cut a new door. Power supplied by auxiliary generator. Will go out soon. No fresh air after it goes out."

"What can I do?" She asked him.

"Keep your phone close and talk to me every once in a while." She looked around the room. The group of kids Danny knew would be in after lunch. She started formulating a plan.

"Can do, hang in there."

**

Lindsay thought during her lunch. Danny called to fill her in on what was going on: Mr. Hudson, processing without a kit, cutting new door, Louie, his brother kept calling. He sounded stressed. He sounded tired. The bell rang and her students started coming in.

**

Danny opened a drawer next to the bed and found laminated newspaper articles about Mr. Hudson's past. Falling back on the bed, he thought about his relationship with his own brother.

"I gotta get out of here." He mumbled to the empty room. Then his phone rang. "Hello?"

"Why did the computer need glasses?" Danny checked the caller ID again and it ready Lindsay but it was a kid's voice. "To fix his web site." He laughed and the party of the other end hung up.

He texted Lindsay. "Keep 'em coming. If I don't answer, I'm very busy."

Every five minutes a different voice came over the line. He did the job while listening to kid jokes. If he was in the middle of something, he hit the speaker button.

"What do you get when you cross a vampire with a snowman—frostbite."

"What has six wheels and flies—a garbage truck."

"What does a martial arts fan eat—Kung Food."

"How do you talk to a fish—Drop it a line."

"Why did the tiger at the circus eat the tightrope walker—He wanted a well balanced meal."

**

"Who keeps calling him?" Stella asked Flack after hearing a few of the jokes.

"Lindsay and her kids at school. They have been calling about every five minutes or so. They've been making him laugh. And sometimes we can listen in when he puts them on speaker. I've learned a few good ones to share with my nephews."

**

The phone rang again and he hit speaker, Lindsay's voice came through. "What did one magnet say to the other—I find you very attractive." It would have been much better to Danny if that call hadn't been on speaker phone. Flack heard it and gave him a hard time about it.

"What's big, grey and goes round and round—An elephant stuck in a revolving door."

"What's green and sings—Elvis Parsley"

"Where do kids learn their ABCs?—at LMN-tary school."

The jokes continued until 3:00 on the nose. And then Lindsay called. "Hey, how you holding up?"

"Better, thanks to you and the kids. Keep your phone close, I may call later tonight and have you keep me company. Jerry has a hole cut, he says a few more and he'll start cutting the door."

"I'll be here."

**

Then she got it. She called a few times to check on him and got the message. "The customer you are trying to reach cannot be located. She waited 30 minutes and tried him again and got the same message. She didn't want to bother him, but she dug Flack's card out of her bag and gave him a call.

"Detective Flack."

"Hey Flack, its Lindsay. How are things with Danny? I cant reach him."

"I'm gonna kill him." Don mumbled under his breath, but not quiet enough. "Linds, he's out. I'll let him fill you in later, but his phone died. Battery ran out. Someone kept him busy with jokes all afternoon. But he was going out with his brother for a beer."

"Thanks, that all I needed to hear."

**

"What happened today little brother? I called and called, left messages. Then you call me back tellin' me you'll grab me in an hour." Louie and Danny sat hunched over a table in the corner of a bar.

"Tough case. Confining space. Dead Body. Brothers. It was just bad."

"What happened to your phone? I didn't know the number you called me from earlier."

"My was phone was used all day talking to Stella and Flack about the case and then Lindsay and her students called every five minutes for two hours with jokes and kept me company." He laughed. "Some of their jokes were really bad."

Who's Lindsay?" He knew the names 'Flack' and 'Stella' from talking to him years ago. But 'Lindsay' was not a name that he recognized.

"Girlfriend." It came out so easily.

This peaked Louie's attention. "How long?"

"I've known her for a few months."

"She has students?"

"She's a teacher. Just moved to the city from Montana.

"Small town girl in the big city, where'd you meet her?"

"Her classroom. Mac sent me to visit the kids and see what they were doin.'"

"Ma met her yet?"

"No."

"She gonna?"

"Probably."

"Wow." Louie knew how big this was. He could count on one hand the number of times Danny had brought a girl home to meet the parents.

"Yeah, wow." At that moment it dawned on Danny Messer how far his relationship with Lindsay could go.

They shared a few more drinks and storied before calling it a night.

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Please read and review. Thank you so much in advance.


	10. Chapter 10

_I love you guys so much. You words are so kind and supportive. I have written this to the end of the second season already and into part of the summer. I am following the broadcast dates of when the episodes aired and filling in with other stuff. As usual, please read and review. _

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Christmas lights decorated for the season and reflected their colors off the wintery wonderland. Lindsay loved the views around her; the Christmas tree was decorated with a few gifts already underneath and snow blanketed everything in sight. It was peaceful, it was quiet, and it was the last thing she wanted.

Her plane landed in Montana four days ago, and she was bored. The worst part was the she wasn't even halfway through her visit. Plane tickets were cheap about three months ago. She bought a ticket home that flew out four hours after school let out for Christmas break. The first days were filled with family and friends wanted to hear all about her life in New York, but Christmas was still days off and she was going crazy.

She filled her time thinking about her students and what they were doing; each had told her their plans excitedly as the last bell rang. She also thought about Danny, his arms wrapped around, how his chest felt under her head, his lips against her. She pulled the blankets tighter around her and drifted into more daydreams about him while more snow fell outside.

**

Across the country, Danny was doing a little better because he was busy working. But visions of Lindsay appeared wherever he went. And at night he sat on the couch thinking about their date the night before she left.

They made dinner together…that's not true. They flirted for about two hours in the kitchen with looks and touches, kisses and embraces, and by some miracle something edible was made. She'd brought 'Christmas Story' and it was even playing in the background, but they didn't see much of it.

_She snuggled into his side, a place that was always hers, and he kissed the top of her head as the movie began._

"_Danny, did you know that it only takes two muscles to purse your lips into a simple pucker, much like what you just did?"_

"_No kidding." He kissed her head again and went back to the movie._

_But she wasn't finished. "A passionate kiss can burn 6.4 calories a minute." She sat up and faced him. "A pucker takes two muscles" and she leaned in pecked his lips quickly. He was not quick enough to respond before she pulled back. "A serious French kiss uses all 34 of your facial muscles." Taking her face in her hands, she nibbled and teased his mouth with hers, sliding her slips slowly, learning the shape and feel. She knew that she was being a little bold, but what kissed she could get that night would have to last the whole time that she was gone. Her head turned slightly and the tips of her tongue along his barely parted lips and after one taste she had to have all of him. She pulled back and looked into his eyes and then leaned in again. Gentleness was gone. She demanded entry with her tongue and the two of them battled for dominance and control. Danny slowly pushed her back against the opposite arm of the couch and hovered over her. His eyes were intensely crazed when he leaned in again. Their kisses became slow and deep. They became hot and fiery. He pulled way when air became a necessity._

"_Boom." His eyes were lightly closed and he waivered a bit from dizziness._

"_Yeah, you can say that again."_

"_Boom." Whispering as he leaned in to kiss again._

"_Danny?" He was almost on her lips again._

"_Yeah?" Forehead touched. A small tilt of her chin and they would be connected again._

"_Did you know that a good intense session of making out, done properly of course, should utilize every muscle and tendon in your body?" Innocent eyes looked up at him._

_**_

_The alarm went off at an ungodly hour the next morning. He had never gotten up at 5AM, but after a night like the one he had with Lindsay it was damn worth it. Waking up that early gave him enough time to get her home, cleaned up and ready for school. But he did not want to move. He could die a happy man. Lindsay was practically glued to his back, a leg thrown over his hip and under his arm snaked one of hers. A hand rested over his heart. Her breath warmed the back of shoulder with every exhale._

_He was sore. They hadn't had sex the night before but they rounded second and were a breath away from third. A small smile formed at the thought of the baseball metaphor. Swimming though his memories, he laid there in his boxers. She grabbed a pair to sleep in from the drawer and ended up in his undershirt and she was plastered to him, deliciously wrapped around his body._

_**_

Now all these days later he could still catch her scent on the pillow she used.

**

"When are you coming back?" It was a text she missed while opening presents on Christmas Day. Wrapping up in a blanket, she excused herself to the front porch to call him after they'd finished Christmas dinner.

"Messer." His voice oozed through her. He was everything New York to her.

"I miss you." She drew out each word.

"Hang on." She heard him go from a noisy environment to someplace quiet. "Hey, how ya doin'?"

"Bored, this place isn't me anymore. I've been bored since the second day. There's not enough going on. It's too quiet; there are no sirens, no honking horns and no Danny Messer. What have you been up to?"

"Working . I'm living at the lab practically. Mac asked met o go home and get some sleep. For a moment I thought about hopping on a plane and coming to see you. When you coming back?"

"The second, I land early in the evening. Can you pick me up?"

"Sure. Send me the flight info."

"Where are you?"

"Parents. Ma's asked again when you are comin' for dinner.

"Tell her soon. Miss you."

"Back at ya, Montana."

They talked for a long while about everything and nothing. She missed him, but hearing his voice was soothing and comforting. She listened to him talk about the cases he'd been working on and how things were going at his Ma's with everyone there.

**

Police power got him through security and all the way to the gate. He leaned against a column across the terminal waiting. Waiting for the plane to pull up. Then waiting for the jet way to connect with the plane. Then waiting for the doors to open. Then waiting for that first person to come off the jet way. Waiting for Lindsay.

Every cliché happened when she stepped off the plane. The clouds parted, the sun came out, his vision cleared, and the birds started to sing. He saw her, and she was beautiful. Even more beautiful than he remembered. All the moments they'd shared in the past months, he'd thought of them while she was gone, but nothing could compare to seeing her right then. He saw her but she didn't see him and she was in a hurry to get where she was going. Then he realized she was hurrying to get to him.

He stayed three steps behind her. He ducked around corners, behind columns and passengers. He shadowed her all the way to baggage level. She looked around for him, up on her tip toes to look over the heads of other people. Not seeing him, she made her way to the restroom, but before she could get there Danny questioned her.

"Excuse me miss, can I hold your bag for you?"

She was kissing him. There was no memory of her approach, the look in her eyes or anything, just the soft pressure of her lips. Breath caught in the back of his throat and one hand went to the back of her head holding her in place. The room spun, his heartbeat sped up and her body was pulled closer. The kisses never ended. Each one was punctuated with another.

"Welcome home Montana." Was whispered between their lips.

**

Lindsay found herself at a table listening to Danny and Flack share cop stories a week later over a few beers.

"Alright, dumbest criminal you've run into." Lindsay stated looking between the two men waiting for someone to start talking.

Flack sat up and put his hands out in victory. "Electronics store robbery/murder. Manager was killed while closing up. $10,000 in merch was stolen, mostly cheap digital cameras, but the packaging was all left behind."

"I remember that. It was about three years ago. I had to process all those boxes, about 300 of them. It was like singing '99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall.' I took one down, dusted around. 98 boxes from the scene crime to go. There were no prints on anything. It was awful. I really feel for Adam when we bring him box after box of evidence to process, he goes through what I went through back on that day. It really was awful." Danny shook his head.

"So with no prints and grainy surveillance, we seemed to have nothing. Then Aiden came in and looked at the surveillance again and noticed flashes of light on the tape. We argued with her that there was no gun fire at the scene. No casings, no holes nothing. She looked at us like we were crazy and said that it was camera flashes."

"We went back to the scene and looked at the cameras that were on display. On each of them were photos of the suspects: together, separately, different angles. While they were taking what they were going to steal out of the packaging, they took breaks. They would take photos of themselves with the cameras on display. But even more than that, we had them further back in the memory of the cameras when they were casing the place."

"We used the pictures they took of each other as their wanted photos. And very quickly, we had them in jail for murder. They had to be the two dumbest people." Flack finished.

Lindsay laughed at the stupidity of it. "Aiden, I haven't met her yet. Is she a detective, criminalist, lab rat?" The mood at the table changed and Flack kept looking at Danny.

"Aiden was the closest thing I had to a partner; we were teamed up together a lot. Last fall, she compromised the integrity of the lab when she messed with evidence. Mac had to let her go." Danny stared off into space as he spoke. She didn't know what to say and things had become awkward at the table.

"You talked to her lately?" Flack directed at Danny

"No, she's been busy getting her PI lisence and with something else. I talked to her maybe early November. The lab is still hurting since she was dismissed, weve been down an investigator ever since. Adam's getting better, but then we'll have to replace him."

"Does he dance at the crime scenes?"

Danny almost snickered. "Not yet."

"Adam, the one the night I brought you dinner. He dances?"

"He dances while standing and working at the computer, waiting for results. Everyone has seen him bustin' his groove."

Lindsay felt the mood start to change and get lighter. "Okay guys, craziest crime scene you've ever been to."

Danny did not hesitate before talking. "Goggle Safety Seminar." He did not even look up.

"I'm sorry, what?" She couldn't have heard him right.

Flack just about spit out the drink that he had taken. "That was almost comical."

"So we get called out to this factory. When we got there, we looked around talked to a few people and left without investigating or even getting out kits out of the car."

Flack took over. "The company we were called out to had a perfect safety record for at least the last five years. They were holding a seminar to re-up their safety certificates. The seminar was about the importance of wearing safety goggles on the job. It included a video showing graphic industrial accidents of what can happen when you DON'T wear safety goggles. When three ambulances were called out, a detective was sent."

Danny waved a dramatic hand at Don. "Enter Detective Flack and I"

"Twenty five people injured themselves while trying to get out of the room. Thirteen others passed out and another required head stitches from a fall from his chair. It was chaos, the viewing room was in shambles."

Danny piped in. "And their perfect safety record was down the tubes."

"That's horrible, but kinda humorous. She toasted them and laughed.

**

The night wound down and Lindsay was saying goodnight to Danny. Their forehead rested together after a passionate kiss. His mood had grown dark again on the ride home.

"I'm sorry for asking about Aiden." She watched his eyes for any kind of reaction.

"Don't worry about it."

"But something in the room changed when I did." She was trying to apologize.

"It just brought back memories and feelings."

"Oh." Her face fell.

"I felt betrayed by her actions or almost action rather. I thought I knew her, I thought she would never do anything like that. But the fact that she even thought about it…I felt betrayed."

"I'm sorry." They stood for a long time under the street lamp in front of her apartment holding onto each other.

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_I thank you for reading. This was a long chapter with a lot in it. Please read and review. I do have a question if anyone cares to answer, just hit the review button and let me know the answer. Have Flack and Sid ever been in a scene together? I mean other than in 'Point of No Return." Are there are any scenes in season 2 or three. I could not think of any, but I have not watched the season in a while._


	11. Chapter 11

_A few things before we start. _

_--The stupid criminals from the last chapter. Yep, they're real story. A few details have been changed but this did happen. And the goggle safety, that happened too. Hard to imagine, but it did. _

_--Also the Flack question, it just kinda popped in there when I saw Peyton at a lot of scenes, but noticed that Sid never left the morgue._

_--It doesn't take much to make me happy, but I am always encourage by the reviews and I've got 85+ and over 6500 hits. Its the little things in life I guess._

_As always read and review._

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There was a welcomed difference between the cold of the city streets in January to the warm air inside the dimly light club. Light jazz filled her ears when she came through the door. It wasn't what she expected when Danny invited her out. "Be there at 8, I'll have you home early, I know it's a school night." His message said. She searched the small club until she saw his profile at a table across the room. A glass of wine and a beer sat in front of him. Wandering through the tightly packed tables and people to where he sat and she looked his way in wonder.

"What?" The question wasn't laced with its normal sarcasm. It was almost soft.

"This place," she took a good look around, "doesn't seem like you. Music doesn't either."

"It's not." He told her bluntly.

"Okay, why are we here?" There was nothing around that would clue her in onto why she was in this place.

"I want you to meet someone…the bass player."

Lindsay turned quickly to see what might make this person special, but saw nothing. Turning back to him she had to ask, "You setting me up with other guys now? He's attractive and all but a little old for me, besides, I thought we had something going on here." She teased, waving a finger between the two of them.

"No wiseass. I work with him." He took a drink. "That's Mac."

"So that's the famed Detective Mac Taylor."

"Yep, I told him I was coming tonight. You've met almost everyone else. I thought you should meet him." Taking in the fact that she was about to meet Danny's boss, she sat back and enjoyed the music and sipped her wine.

**

"Hey Boss. Sounds good tonight."

"Danny." The two men shook hands.

"Mac this is Lindsay Monroe." The two made eye contact. "Lindsay, this is the shirt and tie guy you were expecting that day in your classroom, Detective Mac Taylor." Mac looked at himself and saw no shirt and tie.

"It's nice to put a face to a name and all the stories Danny's been telling." A slightest hint of a blush flashed across Danny's cheeks. "It's also nice to put a face to the voice I heard on the phone all those months ago. Sure you won't reconsider?"

Lindsay shook her head. "No, I'm happy in the classroom for now."

Huh, what…reconsider what?" Danny was lost.

Lindsay tossed her head back and brushed her hair off of her face then locked eyes with Danny. "Mac offered me a job last fall. It's what brought me to New York originally." She stated matter of factly.

"I offered her Aiden's job. I sought her out in Bozeman because of the work she did on some cases. We talked on the phone, she told me she would take the job and then a few days later she called back from a New York number and backed out. I knew _of_ her when she called me to come out to her classroom."

Danny's mouth hung open. Did he really hear what he thought?

"In another life I was a detective, criminologist, investigator, interrogator, and expert witness." She stated.

Danny went from being a focused detective to a goldfish. His mouth kept opening and closing as if he was about to ask a question but no words came out.

"I take it Danny didn't know all this." Mac pointed quickly at Danny when he noticed his face.

"Yes and no. He knew that I have a background in science and that I worked in a lab, just not a crime lab."

"You were a cop?" He restated the fact as if it were still sinking in.

"Hard to believe?" There was a little bit of challenge in her question.

"Believe-no, grasp-kinda." She watched him cock his head to the side while talking.

"Danny, I gotta get back. Lindsay it was a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm sure we'll see each other again." She followed him to the stage with her eyes.

"Why is it so hard to grasp?"

"The thought that I could be working with you everyday," he leaned in close, "I don't think I'd be able to keep my hands off of you if I had to stand that close and process evidence all day." It was her turn to blush. A light came on behind his eyes. "That's why you've been so understanding about dates being cancelled, and the late hours and…and…and being called out on Saturdays and Sundays. You've worked the job and lived through all of it."

"Yes."

"Alright truth time, what made you leave police work." It was supposed to be a simple question.

"Let's go for a walk."

**

She was quiet as they walked. He gave her the freedom to stand as close or far from him as she wanted and he also let her choose the pace. Her head hung low and her hands were buried deep in the pockets of her coat. The night was cool, but not as cold as some winter nights in the city. Then a cross wind hit them as they crossed the street and it chilled them. It was one of those winds that brought tears to your eyes and stayed in your bones long after getting inside.

"On second thought, let's go to the diner by my place." Lindsay mentioned. Even though Danny was used to the cold weather, he still hated the harsh cold winds that seemed to come from no where. He silently thanked God for her decision.

**

"We all have cases that haunt us." Danny and Lindsay say on opposite side of a table, stretched out over the booth benches and shared a huge plate of fries. They rubbed you the wrong way, the suspect got away, not enough evidence, stupid mistakes, all of the above." There was slowness to the rest of the explanation. Each statement carefully thought through. "There was a cold case from years ago that I look at when I joined the crime lab back home. It consumed me. It was always on my desk. No matter what technology came out or scrap of evidence we came up with, no progress was ever made. I built up a reputation of a good interrogator and yet I could not ask the right questions or get the right information to move on this case. In a small town I couldn't get away from the scene of the crime, the victims' families, or the idea that someone I knew could possibly be the suspect. It was always in the back of my mind. Mac called last fall about the job and I saw it as a good time to move. When I got to New York, I'd been off the job for two weeks and I decided to stay out."

"Wow." She just nodded her head. "So you became a teacher and I came along and swept you off your feet." A smile appeared on her lips, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"Pretty Much." Her eyes still gazed off in the distance.

"What was the case you worked?" Curiosity ate at him, wondering what would consume her enough that when she talked about it, her eyes went dull and glassy.

"It was a multiple homicide. Three teenage girls were gunned down in the diner." The way she said it made it sound like it was the only diner in town. "The waitress was also killed. Shot gun was used. The scene was covered in blood. There was only one survivor and she has not been able to identify anyone that was brought in. It's just gone round and round in my head and nothing has moved the case forward."

"I'm sorry."

"We all have cases that haunt us."

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_Thanks for reading, now review. I might find it in my heart to publish the next chapter which happens to be about Valentines Day._


	12. Chapter 12

The day had been odd. There was no other word for it other than odd. The February weather was unusually warm and the students were wound up. The phone on her desk rang in the middle of her afternoon lesson. "Ms. Monroe there's a delivery for you here in the office. Please send two students to pick it up." She nodded quickly to the two students closest to the door and they took off.

"They're on their way." Maybe it was the items for the items for the science unit that she was teaching. She went back to teaching her lesson.

"So arachnids have eight legs and insects have only six. Arachnids have two main body parts and insects have…" Her teaching came to an abrupt end when the kids returned.

"Wow! Those are not the millipedes I ordered." She proclaimed. One child stood in the doorway with the most beautiful bouquet of yellow roses. The other child held a vase full of yellow roses with red tips. She helped them get them up on the lab table and then stood back to look.

"Ms. Monroe, who sent you the flowers?" There's a nosy child in every class, it never fails. He's always the one to ask the questions that everyone is thinking.

She already knew. Her father always sent her flowers at work on her birthday and Valentine's Day. But she decided to humor the kids and check the cards. Pulling the card from the yellow roses first, she opened the tiny envelope and found a folded piece of yellow legal pad paper instead of the standard note card. Unfolding it and reading the note quickly, her stomach tightened. She would know that handwriting anywhere.

"Hey guys, these aren't for me and they aren't from whom I thought they were from…Listen to this. "Yellow roses are for friendship. She here is a rose on this Valentine's Day for each of you. Detective Messer. PS. Hey boys take them home to your mothers, they'll love them."

Lindsay laughed at his last written comment. A murmur swayed through the class, hushed comments about the flowers, boys, Valentine's Day and everything else.

"Okay everyone gather around and I'll take a picture with the flowers and send it to him as a thank you." She really needed to squeeze them in to get everyone in the picture and still see the flowers. After a few tries, she got the perfect picture and hit send. Then added a text message, "The kids love your flowers."

Her phone beeped. "But, do you like yours?"

She assumed that the others were from her dad. Setting her phone down on the table top, she turned around to the other set of flowers and took the card off the stick. Inside she found the standard card. "Happy Valentine's Day. Sorry I couldn't get the night off. We'll have dinner this weekend. D-"

Taking up her phone again she started to type. "I love my roses."

"Ms. Monroe, who are they from?" Mr. Nosy asked again.

"Detective Messer sent these to me." A chorus of ohhh's went though the through the class. "Okay, okay, okay…back to our lesson."

**

She called Flack on the way home to check on Danny's schedule, see what kind of day he had been having and to get some suggestions. After calling a few other places, Lindsay still had some time to kill before heading out for the night. Instead of looking at the computer screen not two feet in front of her, she stared at the flowers across the room. Danny told the kids that their yellow flowers meant friendship, but didn't mention what the color of her roses meant. She googled "Yellow roses red tips" and read the results.

**

He was in paperwork hell, had been all day and it was all his fault. He let the files pile up on his desk. He despised this part of the job. As a matter of fact he couldn't think of anyone who didn't complain about the stuff. Well, he could not think of a time when Mac complained it. Mac was always signing stuff, filling out forms, and always had a pen in hand at the ready just in case. An image popped into Danny's head: Mac sneaking around the lab looking for things to sign his name on. Then another image: A giddy Mac sitting behind his desk and writing on page after page of white paper and throwing then into the air with a giant smile on his face.

His phone rang making the images evaporate and a new one take its place.

"Messer."

In the most sultry, sexy voice should could find inside she told him, "I am about to have, what I am told, is the best chicken parmesan in town." His stomach growled at the thought. He skipped lunch.

"That's sounds so good."

"You like chicken parmesan?" Oh the things that her voice were doing to him.

"Oh, yeah." He was so hungry; food, Lindsay, food, Lindsay. He did not know which he was hungrier for at that moment.

She laid it on thick this time, pausing after each item. "Bubbly mozzarella, tender juicy chicken, and I have a couple of cannolis for dessert."

"You are so mean. I am so hungry and you're describing this fabulous food. I can almost smell it"

"Poor baby, take a break and go get something to eat."

He was about to whine about the wonderful offering from the vending machines when he heard Stella's voice. "Hey Lindsay."

"Hey Stella." Lindsay greeted and then moments later he saw Stella walk by the office door.

"Monroe?"

"Yeah Messer."

"Where are you?" He was out of his chair and looking for her.

"Break room." The line went dead and he turned the corner in a matter of seconds following his nose and saw here at one of the tables which was covered in food.

"You have got to be the best girlfriend on the face of the earth." He took her face into his hands and kissed her deeply. It was a pleasant surprise, him being at work and everything. "Thank you for dinner." He ended the sentence with one last kiss. "What d'ya got?"

"I've got chicken parmesan on linguini, mixed veggies and cannolis."

"You know what I like. Thank you again and Happy Valentine's Day."

He filled her in on the day and told her about the images of Mac with the paperwork. Their impromptu dinner in the break room was better than any romantic date that he could have set up. They laughed, talked and had a great time.

**

He couldn't get enough kisses before she would be gone again. They stood at the elevator waiting for the doors to open.

"Thank you for my roses. They really are beautiful."

"You're welcome." Kiss. "I'll talk." Kiss. "To you soon." He leaned into the elevator one more time to get one last kiss before the door closed on him.

**

"Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so are you. I'm home. Doors are locked." The message finally came telling him that she was home and safe. He read her words again and they warmed him all over.


	13. Chapter 13

_You guys rock. Thank you to all of those who have been reading. And HUGE thanks for the reviews. Let's me know you are still reading. Please continue to read and review. _

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A week after Valentine's Day Lindsay was back at the same table in the break room, only this time it was covered in creepy crawlies. Danny finished his shift for the day, but wanted to share some dishes with everyone that he had seen while out on a case. When she arrived she was greeted warmly.

"Hey kiddo, good to see you again." Stella pulled her into a warm hug

"We need to get you a permanent visitor's pass." Flack stated.

"That would be nice. No more waiting around downstairs for someone to bring me up."

Danny interrupted. "I got meal worm spaghetti, sink bug pâté, that's nice, cricket croquette, raised and bruschetta, Thai dragon flies. Who's going first?"

"This is the big surprise meal." Stella was first, but it was a decline. "You've got to be kidding me."

Don, "pass."

Lindsay looked at the table. "It's just protein." She took a bite of a fried tarantula on a stick.

Everyone leaned around and watched as she ate. Mac leaned toward Danny. "Told you she'd do it."

"Alright, alright, here you go." The younger man fished through his pocket and handed Mac some money. Mac announced that there was pizza in his office and the two were left alone.

"You bet Mac I wouldn't eat it?" Her face read 'what were you thinking.'

"Yeah, what was I thinkin'? Shouldn't bet again a county girl."

"That's the second bet you've lost because of me." There was a playful twinkle in her eye when she looked at him.

"Yeah, I should have learned by now. When are your parents arriving?" He started eating.

"Couple of weeks and they'll be here for about five days. We still doing dinner one night?"

"Yeah, I'll have to check my schedule and let you know when I'm off."

"They want to do all the touristy stuff, but the thought of taking them on one of those bus tours seems so silly to me. But it will be their first trip to NY." She shrugged her shoulders as if to give up. "I guess I'll look into one for us."

"Let me see if I can get of the trucks on my day off and you can do your own tour."

"You are so awesome." And the kiss just proved it.

**

It was so quiet in her room. The kids were reading. Her phone beeped and it was startled her. "What do you weigh?" She had to look at her phone three times to make sure that she read it right.

"Excuse me?" The bell rang and the kids filed out.

"What do you weigh?" Came back again.

"Don't you know it's not polite to ask a woman what she weighs?"

"Fine, I'll find some other petite woman to wrap my arms around."

"I'm sorry, what was the question again?" Danny had to laugh at the back pedaling she was doing.

"What do you weigh?"

"Can I ask why you would like to know?"

"I need some help with a reconstruction and I need to know what you weigh."

She typed the three digits.

"That's works; you willing to help?"

"Sure, send me the info and I'll be on my way."

**

"There have been six suspicious deaths in this building over the last ten years." She informed Danny and announced her arrival at the same time. "I took the GraveLine tour. You visit places where famous people have died or mysterious deaths have occurred. This was stop number eight."

"Thank you Ms. New York tour guide, now get over here." He leaned down to tie the shoes on his feet. "I need to know why the casts of the shoe prints came out the way they did. I weight about the same as Dr. Zimmer, you weigh about the same as the vic, the extra weight," he pointed to some weights nearby, "will make it even. Come'ere."

She approached him and put an arm around his neck. He picked her up effortlessly and made quick work of his steps and set her down.

"Thanks," with a kiss to her cheek.

She stepped back and watched him work. He took pictures of the prints that were just made. She found herself staring at him again; the way he focused, carefully moved around the delicate evidence, focused on the computer screen, waiting for results. The dedication she saw was amazing.

"You enjoying the show Montana." He caught her out of the corner of his eye.

"Yes, I am. You love your job and I see it more and more every time I see you work. Plus," she looked over every inch of him making it really obvious that she was staring, "its fun to watch. How did you end up as a cop who investigates crime scenes?"

"I was playing ball in the minors, got into a fight, broke my wrist. Ball was no longer an option. Went into the academy, graduated top of my class. Mac recruited me and here I am almost five years later." He worked on the shoe prints throughout his explanation. "I love my work, met some great people and it's never boring."

"Yeah, I remember." She sounded nostalgic.

"Do you miss it?"

"What, you mean the wonderful hours, the salary, or how flattering I looked in a flak vest?"

"I'm sure you looked good in a vest." He looked her over once and again before meeting her eyes, and then going back to work. "But really, do you miss anything about it?"

"Sure there is, but I get it tenfold in teaching without all the blood, gore, crying relatives, and liars. But the part where I get to put the pieces of the mystery and catching the bad guy, I do miss that. So I live vicariously through you."

"I'm glad I can help." He took a dramatic bow. "We still going for drinks when I'm done?"

"I know you promised me drinks for this, but I think I'm going to need some dinner too." Lindsay told him.

"I'm not giving you anything until I finish here."

"Make tracks cowboy."

**

"So Mac is going to let me borrow one of the trucks next Wednesday to take your parents for a tour, where all are you wanting to go?" They sat at their normal table in the diner.

"Um…they are wanting to see the Statue of Liberty and go to the top of Empire State. Mom wants to see all the stores on Fifth Avenue. Dad wants to see all the stadiums. I want just to ride around and see the city, ride the subway, and see the city at night…"

"Okay, on Wednesday, let's drive around until about one. I'll drop you guys off to rest. We can meet here for dinner, take the train to the Empire State, go to the top, see New York at night and then back track our steps for dessert."

His suggestion was received with a gaping mouth. "That's perfect, but then what am I to do with them the other days, you covered it perfectly."

"There are the museums, opera, and zoos. There are plenty of things to do."

"All the things you wouldn't do."

"You know me so well." Kiss.

**

"Thanks for your help again today."

"No problem, plus it was a good excuse to see you."

He caught her arm as they walked towards her apartment. "Hey, you don't need an excuse. Rain, shine, snow, sleet, you don't need one. I like having you around, even just to hang out and do nothing, watch tv, read. Okay?" He had her face cupped in his hands, thumbs rubbing her cheeks, forehead touching to hers.

"Okay." She whispered. Their chaste good night kiss was anything but. It was fireworks exploding in her head. It was electricity, sending tingles to all parts of her body. It squeezed her heart and tightened her stomach. She found herself up on tiptoes wanting more of the intense and passionate taste. A sigh escaped when then pulled apart.

"You're parents are coming in on…"

"Sunday." She breathed, still looking for his lips.

"Dinner and movie night at my place on Saturday?" His nose was rubbing hers waiting for another kiss.

"Nope, I already have plans for that night. Sorry." All touching stopped and he stepped away, staring at her in complete shock.

"What plans could you have that keeps you from being able to do 'dinner and movie night' with me?"

She had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. "On Saturday morning, when I get up, I was going to go over to my boyfriend's place and spend the day hanging out, so that might interfere with your plans for just dinner and a movie. See I already have plans. Sorry."

He got her around the waist. "That's your plan huh? What are we going to do all day?

"Movies, shoot pool, make dinner, cuddle, who knows. It's a long day."

"I don't cuddle." His eyes were so serious.

She got up on her tip toes and up right next to his ear. "I know better and I'll prove you wrong on Saturday." It sent shivers down his spine and his hands tightened around her waist. She kissed him one more time, lightly and left him standing on the sidewalk.

**

On the train his brain was moving faster than the subway car he was standing in. His mind ran through how it felt to be around her, kiss her, fall asleep with her in his arms. These were things that were things that he thought of a lot lately. She kept him on his toes. He thought about how she was very understanding about his job and brought him dinner or met him somewhere when he had a break. She was always on his mind one way or another. Now all he had to do was figure out how to talk to her and maybe admit how he felt about her and the direction their relationship was going. With busy thoughts he entered his apartment.

**

Pounding. Some one very intent on getting his attention was about to come through the front door and the dude sounded big. Groggy, stumbling through the living room, he tried to rub the sleep from his eyes and checked the clock on top of the TV. 12:34.

"Yeah, I'm coming man." More heavy knocks pummeled the door. Checking the peep hole, he found something on the other side that was unexpected. Lindsay Monroe.

The door flew open. "Linds, you alright? What are you doing here?" His question was met with a punch in the arm. "What the hell was that for?"

"Where's your phone?" Ice dripped from each word.

"By my bed, where I normally put it." She stormed off in search of it but came back empty handed.

"Try again, Messer." Uh, oh he was in trouble.

"Okay, okay…um, I was tired by the time I got home, I guess I could have left it in my jacket." She searched the pockets and found what she was looking for, then threw it at him. He had to defend himself and try and catch the offending object at the same time.

"4 missed calls." Showed up on the screen. He had five new text messages also. He scrolled through them.

Text 1: "You home yet?"

Text 2: "Crowded train tonight?"

Text 3: "Call me when you get this"

Text 4: "Hello?"

Text 5: "I'm coming over."

"Oh, Montana, I am so sorry, I was tired and not thinking. I didn't text you when I got home." It was all coming together for him. Dropping the phone on the couch he folded her into his arms and soon felt tears fall on his bare chest. "Oh, hun, I am so sorry." Danny pushed her away and looked into her eyes. "How'd you get here?"

"Called a cab."

"I am so sorry." Strong arms pulled her back into him. "Come on you're staying here tonight. I'll set the alarm and get you home in time to get ready for school." The head against his chest nodded.

**

Moments later he was spooned behind her and they were cocooned deep in the covers. Sleep was a breath away. A sleep, sexy, slurred voice broke the silence.

"See…you cuddle."

He smiled, pulled her closer, and silently laughed before drifting off.

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_Hit the review button please please and please. Feed the hungry review monster. I find them more yummy than cookies._


	14. Chapter 14

Again, I am humbled by the wonderful comments that you have sent me. Thank you. Check the bottom for what's to come in the next few chapters.

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Lindsay Monroe woke up Saturday morning bright and early. She looked at the clock and figured she had a little time before going to Danny's. She cleaned the bathroom, ran the dishwasher, folded laundry, read the newspaper, paid bills and it still wasn't 8am, but she collected her stuff and headed out. Excitement ran through her at the thought of spending the day with Danny.

At the front door of her building a beautiful spring day greeted her; the air smelled fresh and clean. Taking a large amount into her lungs, a decision was made to waste a little more time and walk a bit in the sunshine.

At ten til nine she sent "Good morning sunshine. I'm on my way up. Let me in." The elevator ride was almost over when her phone beeped and she read "K."

His door was open wide and he leaned against the door jam with arms crossed. She could hear cartoons playing somewhere. She could decided if it was coming from his place or through the walls. She'd woke him up. She could read it loud and clear in his eyes, but he still looked good in sweats, undershirt and hair standing in all directions.

"What time did you get in?" Kisses dappled his jaw line.

"Between 3:30 and 4:00 this morning."

"Rough case?" She didn't remember him mentioning anything.

"No, just did not want anything hanging over my head."

"So Flack and a pool table had nothing to do with the lateness of the hour?" Knowledge of their marathon games came to her mind.

"No, and it's too early to be bustin' my friggin' onions."

She pulled him into the apartment, locked the door and headed to the couch. He followed, catching up to wrap his arms around her and lean against her back.

She sat at the end of the couch with a pillow against one hip. She wanted him to lie down and get some sleep but he was protesting.

"Well, I'm not going to fall asleep."

"I'm sure you're not. At least humor me and lie down." She told him.

The TV came on and channels started flying by at a hypnotic pace. That enough would have put him to sleep, but then fingers started sliding through his hair over and over in long passes. Then they would put pressure on his scalp making small circles. Then they went to the base of his neck.

"Montana," sleepily moaned out of him, "it should be illegal, but that feels so good, is there any chance you could quit your job and be on call 24 hours a day to do this? You'd have one client. I'd provide room and board."

"You're tired, get some sleep." She laughed off the tempting offer. The body next to her lost the fight to stay alert and he drifted until he was out.

**

And…she was gone again. He hated the momentary panic he felt when he thought that she might have left. Humming from the kitchen told him she was still around. He had to investigate.

She was too cute. Hair pulled back in a messy pony tail, ear buds in her ears and she was emptying the dishwasher. Each plate was being danced with. Each knife, fork and spoon was silently being sung into. She was fun to watch and he did. The sway of her hips had his attention when she turned around and saw him staring. Then he learned something else that was very important to remember: she was even cuter when she blushed.

"Hi." a small wave came with the greeting.

"Don't stop cause I'm here. I was having fun watching." His head tilted as he looked at her body again.

"I hope I didn't wake you. I got restless and needed to get up."

"You apologizing for cleaning my kitchen? Please, you could be screaming at the top of your lungs while cleaning my place for all I care. Just means that I don't have to do it."

She rounded the end of the counter. "You get some sleep?"

"Yeah, I'm good, thank you."

"Perfect, you're up in time to make us a late lunch." She kissed his cheek and took a seat at the counter to watch.

He rounded the same counter and occupied the same space she was just dancing and singing in, and started lunch. She stared very openly at him. He bent over to pick something up and she leaned as far over the counter as she could to look at his rear.

"You enjoying the view?"

"Most definitely, but it would be better if you were turned a little this way." She used her hands to demonstrate what she was talking about. But he stood straight up. "No, that doesn't work." She wore a perfect pout.

It was amazing how smoothly they bantered back and forth. He just hung his head and shook it at her comments and shook his tail while finishing their food for lunch. A full plate of food was set in front of her.

"How about we shoot some pool this afternoon?"

"I'm surprised you're so eager to lose again." His beautiful eyes rolled at the comment.

"Eat up, wiseass."

**

"This is so wrong." He complained hours later.

"You lost fair and square." Best two-out-of-three turned into three-out-of-five, then four-out-of-seven. Then when he finally won a game, and accused her of letting him win. And each time the wager went up.

Lindsay quickly found her phone on the coffee table next to her and snapped a picture of the situation.

"Hey watch it. I better not see that photo anywhere."

"I am watching it and you are doing a great job." Her feet were across his legs and he was applying a second coat of nail polish to her toe nails, bright red. "And don't worry; I'll make sure that Flack is the only one who gets a copy." She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Really mature Monroe."

"I try."

All finished and closing the bottle, he set it down on the table and turned on the Nicks game. Lindsay got her book from the floor and started reading; for a long time they sat that way. It was perfect for both of them, relaxing late on a Saturday afternoon. There was no need to make conversation, no need to entertain each other. She read her book, he watched his game and it felt natural.

"Hey Linds, come'ere. I wanna hold you." He held his arms open inviting her in. She got comfortable in his arms and continued to read while he watched the game and held her. But it still didn't feel like it was enough. He held her tighter. He wanted her to crawl into his lap so he could wrap himself completely around her.

"Danny, you okay?" She could feel his arms tighten and him pull her closer.

"Yeah…just wanna hold you that's all." She looked up at him strange.

"Okay, I'm going to ask again. Danny, are you alright?"

The words flashed through his mind. The reasons were all right there and so were the doubts. She wouldn't be spending all this time with him, going out of her way to do things if she didn't want to be with him. He loved her, now he just had to be able to tell her. That moment was getting closer and closer and he could feel it.

"Yeah…I'm good, just don't be goin nowhere."

"Not planning on it." She could tell there was still more. When she touched his cheek, he leaned into her hand and turned to kiss her palm, then slowly down her wrist, and to her elbow.

"Linds, did you know that making out done properly…"

A phone rang in the kitchen where they had both left their phones.

"Hold that thought, Cowboy. I would like to explore that idea more with you." She dashed away hoping to tell whoever was calling to buzz off. It was his phone…caller ID read "Mac." She solemnly brought it back to him.

"Somebody better be dead or dyin'." He told her before answering. "Messer…Hey Mac."

"Danny I hate to call you in on your day off, but I need you. We're under a deadline to get some stuff processed. We're trying to tie a murder scene we just got to a case that we have a guy in custody and he's about to be released."

"Yeah, give me an hour, I'll be in." He threw the phone on the table like it burned him when the call ended. "Come'ere." And he kissed her with all he had in him. All the words that he was thinking were pressed to her lips and left her breathless when he pulled away. "I have to go in. You can stay here, go home, I can give you a ride, whatever. Mac says he needs me for about four hours tops. So it's up to you. Think while I change."

**

After that kiss she was too busy thinking about what was going on behind his bedroom door and not what she wanted to do. Fabric would be sliding off of him; skin would be exposed, only to be covered up again. The last part made her frown. When the door opened, gone were the sweats and shirt; back were jeans and a button down. No matter what he wore, he looked good.

"I'm gonna stay. I have plenty to do. Go and I'll be here when you get back."

"I like that idea." He stood near the front door and pocketed all the normal items. "Linds."

"Yeah?"

"I love you, have for a while, been tryin' to find a good way and a good time to tell you, but there isn't one, so I'll tell you now. I love you." And the door closed behind him leaving a smiling Lindsay.

She'd known…she'd known since Valentine's Day when he sent her the flowers. Yellow roses with red tips, when she googled it represented friendship starting to fall in love. She guessed he was done falling, but she knew. She was just excited that he finally caught up.

**

His heart had to slow down eventually. The adrenaline rush from telling her was crazy. He felt lighter.

"Mac, wha d'ya got?" Finding his boss in his office.

"Big scene, lots of evidence, I just need your hands for a few hours. We're under a time crunch here. Case might be tied to another and we need to make the connection."

"I'm on it."

**

Two hours later, he was almost finished.

"Dude, you on something?" Adam asked. He watched Danny hustle through what was on the table in front of him in record time. Glass, paper, wood splinters, all were sorted; fingerprints and trace had been collected and sent off.

"Naw, I just want to get back home." His phone went off. "And that should be results from Sid." Snapping the gloves off to check the results he found a message from Lindsay instead.

"Love you too. See you when you get home." Nine little words and they made a big leap in their relationship. She loved him and she was waiting at home for him.

"Boom."

**

Home was another five hours later. The case was not tied to the previous one. It was a copy cat and sometimes they are more dangerous. One hour lead to two and then three more. Lindsay's message of love helped, but he was toast. He got in the morning before around 4am. He got very little sleep and then was called back into work. It was pushing past midnight when he opened his front door.

Papers, open books, legal pads, teacher manuals, and a hunched over sleeping Lindsay Monroe covered the counter. She still had her pen in hand. He loved this woman.

"Come on baby, let's go to bed." He whispered. Soft, mumbled protests of 'five more minutes'

Were heard as he carried her into bed.

**

"Good Morning Sunshine. I know you hate waking up alone, but I had to meet my parents at the airport. See you Wednesday. Pencil me in for next Saturday night, and I'll talk to you later. Love you, Montana—"

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_Lindsay's parents are about to make thier visit, they go to his parents for dinner, mention of the episodes Live and Let die and Supermen. I have just finished typing the chapters that go with Run Silent, Run Deep, All Access, Heroes, and Charge of this Post. Wow there is really some emotionly charged chapters coming up. Please let me know what you like. It helps in the writing._

_As always, feed the review monster. _


	15. Chapter 15

_Okay, so my afternoon was crazy. I would have had this update here about two hours ago, but I got delayed coming home from work. I couldn't leave becuase I was blocked in by 9 fire trucks, 3 ambulances, and five fire chief trucks. And on top of that, I had about 100 kids that needed to find a way home. Not a good start to the long weekend._

_I am so excited about 10,000 hits. Thanks to those of you who are reading. And if you aren't reviewing thanks for reading. _

_Anyway here is it. _

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"I'm awake, what did I miss?" It was just a text from Danny, but it had Lindsay laughing in the backseat of a cab, sandwiched between her mom and dad. She could see Danny bolt awake, utter the words of his text, and rub the sleep from him eyes. She typed back that her parents had gotten into town safe and sound.

"You want to do dinner tonight?" Was his next question.

"Sure, will get back to you with details."

"What is it sweetie?" Her mother wondered what she was busy doing.

"Danny just let me know that he was awake and wondered if we wanted to meet for dinner."

"Well of course, I want to meet the man I hear about every five minutes. He's driving us around on Wednesday still right?" She asked politely

"Yes, he's going to take us on a tour and then we are going to meet later in the day for dinner, and take the subway to the Empire State Building to see the city at night."

"Are you sure that's safe?" Lindsay had to really try hard not to laugh at her mother. Her question was the same one Lindsay had all those months ago, but it sounded so silly to her now.

"No mom, I promise. It's safe."

**

She spotted his form standing in front of their diner. She was incredibly excited to see him, almost giddy. She was going to introduce the man she loved to her parents. Jogging ahead a bit she had a huge grin on her face.

"Hey Messer." He received a hug, a kiss, and a whispered message, "I'm sorry I had to leave this morning."

His eyes watched as her parents approached. Holding onto her with one arm he moved her to the side and introduced himself.

**

Over dinner Lindsay and Danny fielded questions about their jobs, their relationship, the city; it went on for a good two hours.

Danny kept impressing and amazing Lindsay with each second that they were together. He was getting along beautifully with her parents. She eased back into the booth and watched as he carefully listened to her mom and dad ask question after question. They asked questions only a native New Yorker would know the answer to. He talked with his hands as he explained the history of the city, why the New York Giants play in Jersey, how the city is laid out. Lindsay listened carefully and learned a lot, but she saw how patient he was. He never rushed through an answer and made sure that he fully explained what they wanted to know.

He had her father fully engrossed in a deep philosophical conversation about the Yankees, when her mother got her attention.

"I like him, Lindsay." It was said over the table in hushed tones.

"Good, cause I love him." Danny's conversation hiccoughed as he heard her words spoken out loud for the first time. He picked right back up where he was talking and it was barely noticeable when he put his arms around her shoulder and pulled her close.

**

"It was nice to meet you and thank you for walking us back." Her mother gave him a warm hug.

"Danny, thank you for dinner and the wonderful conversation. I guess we'll see you Wednesday." Her father held out a steady hand towards him for a shake. "Lindsay we'll head up." She handed her father her keys and they stepped through the door.

"You were a huge hit tonight." She told him. Danny thought she was too adorable for words. She had him around the neck and he had her by the hips. "My father loves you and my Mom does too."

"What about you Montana, do you love me?"

She hadn't said the words out loud to him yet, but how could she not love the man standing in front of her. He came to her class, sent flowers, held her close and slept with her without sleeping together, he wowed her parents. Any past relationship she had never came close to what she had with Danny. Everything else faded away when he was near. All the little things that made him distinctively special outshined any grand gesture of love. Did she love him, yes and it was time he heard it from her.

"Look at me because I don't want there to be any doubt." Thumbs caressed his cheeks, she stepped closer. "I love you." Kiss. "Danny, I love you."

"I love you." Tickled her lips before his met hers. It was one of those kisses that define a moment in time, the one that was always looked back at as a defining piece of who they were.

**

"Mom, he'll be here in a minute. We got down here early." Lindsay stood on the sidewalk with her parents in front of her building waiting on Danny to come get them for their day of sightseeing. Lindsay had to get them out of her apartment, out and into the open fresh air.

Her apartment was too small for three grown people. Plus she was sleeping on the couch so that her parents could have the bed. And they were very early risers who came stomping through her 'bedroom' way too early morning for it to be a vacation week. Plus there was only one bathroom…for three adults…it didn't work.

Out on the street, the site of a black truck slowing down in front of her was the greatest sight ever. Danny hopped out to open the two passenger side doors but got an armful of Lindsay instead.

"If we drive away really fast, maybe I could take a nap." She was holding onto him very tightly.

"Has it been that bad?"

"No, just not a lot of sleep."

"I love you." The words were whispered on the wind and spiraled into her ear. His voice and embrace could sooth an angry bear. The tensions drained from her and she melted into him.

"That makes things so much better, hi."

"Hey." He took over. Danny explained the schedule for the day, opened the doors and ushered everyone into the truck.

**

Lindsay laughed. Danny knew a lot of the city based on crime scenes that he worked. Not only did they see all of the touristy stuff, but he also pointed out places he investigated; leaving out all of the gory details. He surprised them a bit when he pulled over and insisted that her mom get in the front seat and then drove them down Fifth Avenue and talked all about the stores. Lindsay quietly fell asleep against the window in the back seat.

When she woke up, her mother was sitting next to her and they were slowly driving past Madison Square Garden. Her father was now in the front seat.

"Whatever you do, don't mention the movie 'Godzilla." She clearly said coming out of her nap. Her father gave Danny a questioning look.

"At the end of the movie, they have to bomb the Garden. It's hard for me to watch." She could tell that he was trying to sugar coat the fact that it took two days to get over watching the movie with her.

"He whined like a baby." Danny's head fell to his chest and the car erupted in laughter.

"Thanks Montana for joining us. How did you sleep?"

"Fine thank you…when do we eat?"

"I thought that was usually my line." He steered the truck to her place.

**

Light shined bright from all the buildings around them. The beauty of New York at night was a completely different experience than that of the city during the day.

Warm arms wrapped around her from behind and anchored him to her. His body blocked the wind that was blowing across the observations deck of the Empire State Building.

"Hey Montana."

"Hey Cowboy."

"I have missed you the past couple days. We haven't met for dinner, coffee; you haven't come by the lab. Flack asked if we were fighting." He placed feather light kisses down the side of her neck. The wind blew across where his lips had been and gave her chills.

"I've missed you too. I miss us together. We still need to explore that idea that you had before Mac called you away the other night." They were content for the moment. They could stand together for a few minutes and be close. She let her head roll back and rest on his chest. He buried his face in her exposed neck, inhaling the scent that was unique to her. Sighing with pleasure his gaze went back to the skyline.

"Montana, look at this view. Beats the wheat fields, no?"

Over her shoulder she caught him staring out at the city that had become her home. "Have you ever even seen a wheat field?" Slipping out of his arms, she wandered off to find her parents.

"What's to see, it's just wheat." He bounced on his toes before taking off to find out where she went.

**

"Saturday afternoon, I will be here." He was saying good night over and over and over to her.

"Why here?" Her hands would not stay still. They roamed up and down his chest, under the leather of his jacket. Around his hips and _low_ on his back. He found that he could not stop his eyes from getting heavy from the sensation when her warm hands found skin under the back of his shirt.

"Um…uh…If I am called…you are at your place not mine." She sought out more skin because of the wonderful reaction she was getting from him. To reach him she had to lean in closer.

"Sounds good, come comfy, but bring extra clothes."

"Whoa, Slow down there Montana, what did you have in mind?" His relaxed features came back to attention.

"Wouldn't you like to know." He felt the immediate loss of her touch when she stepped back, but the fire in her eyes, the hunger as she looked at him from top to bottom made him shiver in anticipation. But when she slapped him lightly in the chest, he came back to his senses. "Wiseass, bring some clothes for work. There is no reason for you to go all the way home, change and then double back to get to work. My plan makes a lot more sense." She came back to his arms.

"I like the way you think… Mom wants us over for dinner on Sunday."

"Sounds nice…what doesn't sound nice…is that I have to get up there before they come looking for me."

Danny lowered himself to her eye level. "Remember, only two more nights…I love you…and I will see you Saturday afternoon."

"It's what I see in my dreams at night. Love you. Let me know when you get home."

"I always do…well almost."

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Please read and review. Thanks.


	16. Chapter 16

_Fire trucks at school yesterday and tornadoes today. Never a dull moment. Here's a big chapter. I was not as happy with this one, but let me know, PLEASE. Review please._

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Thank goodness she washed and changed the sheets. She took great care in smoothing them out and tucking them tight. The fresh smell of clean linens puffed into the air as she tumbled into her bed and stretched out. When she closed her eyes she could see his face and smell him all around her.

Earlier, she stood under a hot shower and she planned that night down to the most minute detail. She washed her hair thoroughly, took great care in shaving her legs, and used her favorite body wash to wash the week away. Wrapping up in a fluffy towel that she laundered with the sheets and comforter, she started prepping for her evening. She dried her hair, smoothed lotion over her silky legs and found Danny's favorite shirt that he left a while back and put it on. She could still smell him in it.

Sliding around in the sheets she got comfortable for what was to come.

She found her book on the small bedside table, fluffed the pillows behind her, pulled the comforter up around her and started reading. Her bed never felt better and she was so happy that her parents were on a plane home and her apartment was empty except for her.

**

The neighbor must have a sick sense of humor, doing home improvements this early in the morning. It felt like she had just fallen asleep. Someone living around her was hanging a picture or fixing a loose board in the floor because they were hammering. Sleep was becoming an impossibility. Whoever was hammering was now working on her front door or was that someone knocking.

Throwing the covers off, she went to the door. "I'm coming." More pounding. "Whatever it is, can wait thirty seconds." Through the peep hole was a very chipper Danny Messer bouncing on the balls of his feet. Locks slid and the door opened.

"What are you doing here so early?" Lindsay hung onto the edge of the door to help keep her up.

"Wow, good afternoon to you too. You feeling alright, because its after 2 in the afternoon." The clock on top of the TV told her the same thing when she looked at it. He had a lot more to say but it was lost when he got a good look at her: sleepy head, one of his t-shirts that just barely came down to her…

"Stop staring Messer and start the coffee."

"Yes, ma'am."

**

Danny watched Lindsay very carefully. She wasn't as quick with her movements. Each step she took was done gingerly. She got up as few times as she could from the couch. Danny also noticed that she'd taken Tylenol twice since his arrival.

She stretched out slowly at the end of the couch as their movie started. Danny thought callously that maybe it was PMS.

"Are you alright?"

She was still trying to get comfortable. "Sleeping on the couch this week left me a little out of sorts. Then last night I slept sitting up." She pulled at her shoulders and neck.

"Turn around, let me work on your back." She eye-balled him. "Come on. I'll be gentle." She did as she was told and turned his back to him. "Where does it hurt?"

Lindsay pointed to her back and neck where something pinched from laying on the arm of the couch for five nights. Danny rubbed his hands together and then placed them low on her back, under the edge of her shirt on bare skin.

"Right there?"

She flinched involuntarily. "Yeah."

"Montana, you have to relax." He felt her shoulders raise as a breath was drawn into her lungs, then it was released and her shoulders slumped a good four inches lower than they were before and she relaxed. He placed all his focus on the knot in her lower back, kneading and massaging it away with long fluid strokes and then small circular ones. Each slow movement was larger and had more pressure behind it.

The knot was long gone and she was enjoying his touch. Maybe it was the feeling of his hands on her skin; maybe it was the fact that they hadn't been alone for a week. Whatever it was, she craved his touch.

"Mmm…." She pressed back into his hands.

"Is it gone?"

"Yes, but I want more." The last word came out as a moan.

His hands moved from the skin on her lower back to her shoulders. She protested at first, but changed her mind when he started working the tight cords between her neck and shoulders. Another sigh came from her and this one settled in the bottom of his stomach.

A warmth spread through him at the thought of his touch creating such a reaction and sound to come from her. She was totally relaxed under his hands and she swayed with each application of pressure.

Danny expertly massaged her shoulders applying the perfect amount of pressure in all the right places. Then down the sides of her spine…over her lower back…and up the side of her ribs. The magical fingers splayed out and up her neck up to her scalp.

"Ohhh…that feels sooo good."

Every emotion running through his body was pouring out of his fingers and over her body. His heart was about to pound its way out of his chest. Lindsay did not make things any easier when she both hands came to rest on his thighs. Her head still moving into the pressure of his hands. She started drawing small circles with her thumbs.

She pushed her body up and back into his chest and slid down further into him. This time the moan was his. The friction her body created between was indescribable.

Both realized a change in the air around them. Her hands ran up and down the length of his legs. They went higher and higher on each pass until they were almost behind her.

He felt like a rubber band being stretched and one little thing would make him snap.

A lot of little things happened at once: lips found the side of her neck, hands came out of her hair and wrapped around her stomach under her shirt, one of her hands came up and into the back of his hair and the other slid up so far on his leg that his eyes crossed.

"Linds…oh God…if we're gonna stop, it needs to be now." The words were spoken into the side of her neck between long wet kisses and his hands were working up to her breasts.

"Why stop when you've just about worked all the kinks out of my back." She was practically writhing against him as his thumbs brushed the underside of her bra.

"Linds, I'm serious."

Her hands pulled away from him. "You're right; we just need to stop all this." She got up and went into the kitchen. "You want something to drink while I am up?"

Confusion, it was the perfect word for what he was feeling. His brain screamed, "What the hell just happened?" and he followed. When she turned from the fridge she was calm and collected. Nothing of the emotion they were just sharing played in her eyes.

"You playin' me? You sit there and…and…and then you stop and ask me if I want a drink?"

She approached him with a new look of hunger in her eyes. He took steps back at the same rate. "Oh, I sat there and did to you exactly what you did to me and then you suggested we stop."

He was still was backing away from her. She looked over his shoulder behind him and smiled. "Do you have any idea what your touches did to me?" He asked.

"And you don't think I missed the feeling of your touches? You love me?" He nodded still stepping away. She took one of his hands. "Would you do anything ever to hurt me." This time there was a shake of his head in response with a few more steps taken. "Good then let's finish what we started." His legs hit the edge of her bed.

She slowly pushed him onto him back.

Long, deep kisses were shared.

Clothes evaporated.

Hands explored gracefully.

Soft pleasurable sounds hung in the air like a spring breeze.

And then…the rubber band snapped.

**

"We're gonna be late." Danny said for the 10th time.

"Just blame it on traffic."

"Yeah, because telling my mother that I couldn't keep my hands or anything else off of you would just be wrong moments after you meet her." He kissed her again with the same amount of passion that they shared the night before.

"Yes, it would."

**

"You ready to meet my parents?" They sat out in front of a house on a residential street on his bike.

"After you cowboy." He could resist kissing her again and getting a flutter in his stomach. Neither noticed the front door open.

"Hey little brother get in here. Food's on the table."

Danny pulled away and set his head on Lindsay's shoulder. "And that would be Louie. Here we go. And remember I love you." He took her hand and led them up to the porch.

"Hey little brother."

"Lindsay, this is Louie?"

"How ya doin'?" She was amazed at how much he sounded like Danny. "Mom's gonna getchya for bein' late."

Danny laughed a bit before looking at Lindsay and then back to Louie.

"Traffic." He shared.

Louie mumbled something as they stepped into the house.

"Mommy, we're here." Danny called out.

"And you're late." They heard from somewhere near the back of the house.

Following Louie to the kitchen, Lindsay took in the house around her. It reminded her much of her parent's home in Montana. There were pictures of family and friends framed everywhere. She let Danny pull her along behind him while she looked at everything she could before they got to the kitchen.

There was more food spread out on the table than she had in about four weeks. "Ma, look what I found out front." Louie announced and then took a seat at the table. Louie introduced them. "Ma, this is Danny, I know you don't recognize him, but he is your other son."

"Hey, you're one to talk. You don't get around here that much either." Danny threw at his brother. Danny kissed him mother on the cheek and gave his dad a pat on the shoulder. "This is Lindsay Monroe, my girlfriend."

Danny's mother was out of her seat and on her feet. "Hi, honey, welcome. I'm so happy to finally meet you, please come join us." Lindsay found herself in the suffocating embrace of Danny's mother.

**

There was no cop talk at the table. It almost came up a few times, but their father squashed it quickly. A lot of the talk around the table was about how good the food was and things that were going on in their parents' lives. Lindsay got the idea that maybe neither son had been home in a while.

**

Long after dinner was over Lindsay sat in the kitchen at the table with Danny's mom. The three men were outside somewhere.

"Lindsay, tell me about yourself." Each woman had a cup of coffee in front of them.

"Okay, what do you want to know or what has Danny already told you?"

"He told us that you are from out west somewhere…"

"Montana." She supplied.

"Ahh, that explains why he calls you that then." There was a pause. "You teach?" She inquired

"Yes, I teach 5th grade math and science. Danny has gotten to know my advanced class that I teach in the afternoon." Lindsay did not know how much information she wanted to hear and kept her answers short.

"You used to be a cop?" The look on his mother's face was as if the idea of Lindsay being a police officer was completely unbelievable.

"Yes, back in Bozeman."

"Have you met any of Danny's friends?"

"I've met the people that he works with. We've been out with Flack a few times; drinks and a couple games of pool." Lindsay smiled, remembering the first night they went out and the game of pool they played. "I've even been over to the lab quite a few times to bring him dinner when he works late." His mother had a strange look on her face. Something was being thought about very seriously. "Ask me about what you are thinking."

"I'm trying to figure out why you are the first girl…woman he's brought home in seven years that he didn't work with. Stella and Aiden have been here for one reason or another, but no one that he has been dating.

Lindsay was stunned. Seven years. "Wow." She sat back in her chair.

"Lindsay Monroe, you must be something special." His mom got up to refresh their coffee, Lindsay to think.

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Thank you so much for reading. Let me know what you think. Love it or leave it?


	17. Chapter 17

Everyone told Lindsay that the first week back from Spring Break was crazy and that is what she got. She couldn't get the kids to settle down and into their routine. The weather was unusually warm for New York and it was only Thursday. She had to get through one more day before the weekend.

Lindsay was unusually busy. The time between spring break and the last day of school meant standardized testing, final grades, projects, and spring fever. Each was time consuming and zapped her energy.

She hadn't seen Danny in a few days, it wasn't unusual, but she missed him. She wanted to see his smile, she wanted to hear his voice, and she wanted to fall asleep in his arms because the world seemed right when she did.

Earlier in the week on Monday night he called as she was getting in bed. "Your cat's in my garden." Lindsay looked at the caller ID to make sure it really was Danny. After a few silent moments of confusion, Danny filled her in about a case that Stella was working about a waitress who was obsessed with calling random men and having phone sex.

"Have you ever gotten an anonymous phone call from anyone?" She asked him sheepishly.

"Sure, it's happened." On his end of the phone, he widened his stance, making it easier to lean his elbows on the counter in the kitchen.

"Does it turn you on?" Thank goodness for the phone she thought. There was no way she could ever have this conversation face to face with him in any situation.

The question alone made him squirm on the other end of the call. But her voice dropped and so did the rock in forming in the pit of his stomach. "Whoa! Slow down there Montana. What'd you have in mind?" He could not figure out what had gotten into her. But maybe the call would be fun.

"How could anyone get something out of that, it's just a voice. They knew nothing about the other person. Not even what she looked like." Lindsay was still having a hard time grasping how this could be fulfilling but he found the best way to explain it.

"It's a fantasy. Uncomplicated means of sexual arousal. You get a little somethin' somethin' and you don't have to play for dinner."

"Is that what you were hoping for tonight when you called, a little somethin' somethin'?" She had to ask. He started it.

"Um…it wasn't my intention in calling you, but…" He straightened and folded his arms. She knew how to put him on the spot.

"Stop while you are ahead Messer." She told him as he fished around for something to say.

He called late last night and she was already in bed. He told her a bed time story about a helicopter, bloody billboard, stolen livers, and the rest is just foggy because she fell asleep in the middle. She dreamed that night about a man casting in the middle of Times Square with a fishing pole and bringing back Mac's shield. She'd have to talk to Danny about that one and see if he mentioned something about it after she nodded off.

"Hello?" She answered the phone when it rang. She hoped it wasn't another parent wondering about this or that. Since Monday she had talked to about a dozen parents. It was cutting into her teaching time and the kids were already crazy enough.

"Ms. Monroe, there's a Detective Messer here in the office for you."

"Send him down, he knows the way." She hung up. "Hey guys, Messer is on his way. Calm down and get to work or I will send him away." For the first time all week the room was silent.

When he knocked on the open door, she thought there would be a repeat greeting for him like at the game, but each student looked up at him and then to her and then got back to work.

"Whoa, what happened here?"

"I told them that if they didn't calm down, I would send you away. This is the first time all week that all of them have been quiet at the same time. To what do I owe this visit?" Papers were shuffled across her table as she tried to work and talk to him at the same time.

"I missed you."

"And…"

"I have something for the kids down in the truck." He stated. An eyebrow raised in question at him.

"For the kids?"

"Yeah." His signature smile added bit of levity that she needed at the moment.

"Okay, give them about 10 more minutes to finish." He started looking around the room. A new book sat on the shelf with the one the kids wrote about baseball. The spine read 'football.' He flipped through the pages and found the photos from the game. He was right in the middle of a mix of smiling kids and parents. Movement caught his eye and it wasn't the class hamster.

"Hey Monroe, what did you do, run out of bug spray?" Danny pointed to a large tank on the counter.

"Giant millipedes, part of our bug unit. We've had them a while and they'll eat anything the kids have left over from their lunches."

"They eat anything?"

"Almost. When we get done, I'll release them in the park."

"Don't eat them." He smiled and looked at her thinking of their bug dinner.

"You ready to take them to their surprise?" She shook her head as she walked to the front of the room where the kids were starting to turn in their work.

"Yeah." He followed.

**

Danny stood at the back of the Department truck with a large box. The kids crowded around him waiting for him to start.

"We had some footballs donated after a case I just worked. I thought that I would give them to you since you let me come to the Giants game." One at a time, Danny handed them out. Each child excitedly thanked him and started tossing the balls around the playground. He joined them in playing catch once every child had a ball. After about fifteen minutes of tossing and running, he excused himself to talk to Lindsay who had taken up a position leaning against a fence.

"Footballs, NFL draft in town, and a first round draft pick murdered, you worked that case didn't you?"

"Yes I did. Tyrell Mann, they called him 'superman."

"Yeah, with good reason. He had forty-five college career touchdowns, over three thousand rushing yards, and averaged over 7.2 yards a carry." He was gob smacked. He could not believe the line of words that just flowed so smoothly out of those lips.

"Don't tell me you know a little something about football, please."

She stood back with her hands on her hips. "Why? Is that so hard to believe?"

"No, just dangerous." He pushed off the fence and started back to the kids who were still tossing around the balls. But turned and walked backwards while talking. "I might ask you to marry me."

She watched as he turned and then jogged back to where the kids were playing and they played away the rest of the afternoon, stopping in time to get back to the class and pack up for dismissal.

"When are you off tonight?" She asked.

"8:00, you wanna meet at the diner?" He checked his phone when it chirped.

"Yeah, call me if you get out on time." He kissed her before he dashed out of the room to meet up with Mac at a scene.

**

"I'm out and on my way." It was 8 on the nose, but she was not at home.

"I'm waiting. Come find me."

He did. He found her among all the same books that she slept on that night at his place. Sensing he was close, she had the table cleared in no time.

"I don't take up that much room; you didn't have to stop working." He slid in next to her instead of across from her.

"I'm tired of looking at it. How was the rest of your day?"

"Normal." She let out a huge yawn. "You look tired."

"I am, between the craziness of this week, my last few classes, and making sure that all of the correct paper work is in for my teaching certificate and graduation, I've been running in circles."

"Let's eat and get you home."

**

He took great care in getting her home a little earlier that night. The text she recieved when he got home told her to put her work away for the night and get in bed. He knew her too well. She had opened her bag as soon as she was through the door to finalize a few things and that led to something else and before she knew it the kitchen table was covered in work. When the text came in, she put her pen down, walked away and got in bed.

"I love you. Talk to you tomorow."

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_Thank you so much for reading. I need to know you are still out there._

_I am blown away at the over 11600 hits. Thank you so much for coming in and reading. _

_Those of you who are reading and reviewing; I am writing for you. I hope you continue. _

_Those of you who are on alert about when a new chapter is published. Awesome. I think that is so cool. Send me what you are thinking about this so far. _

_Keep the good comments coming and please review. I appreciate each and everyone of you. _

_The next chapter (hoping to have it edited and published Sunday) talks about Run Silent, Run Deep._

_Thank you so much to all of you. There are not enough words to show how much it all means to me._

_--LivelyStevens_


	18. Chapter 18

_Happy Easter. I wanted to get this published before all of the Easter festivities this afternoon in my life. Hope to get some Easter candy from you in the way of reivew._

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Adam hovered in the office doorway. "Mac can I talk to you."

"Yeah, come on in." Mac watched Adam enter and close the door, that movement was enough to get his full attention.

"Um…now I've checked and double checked and I always got the same result and so I checked again I don't understa…"

"Adam, what?" Mac knew that whatever he had to say was big.

The younger man was nervous; he looked down at the file in his hand. "The DNA sample from the cigarette butt you found in the end zone came back to an internal control sample." He hated having to tell his boss this.

Mac was confused. "What do you mean? The smoker works here in the lab? How can that be?" He took the file from Adam and looked at the results. He read over them again and started thinking. "Have you told anybody about this?" Mac's eyes moved from the paper to the younger man standing in front of him.

"No…no just you." Mac picked up his phone and sent a text. "Thank you Adam, keep this to yourself."

**

"What is it Mac? You beeped me 911." He came into the office looking over a file with information about the case he and Stella were working on. Mac could tell how focused he was on his work.

"Danny, I need you to explain how your DNA ended up in the grave of my DB at Giants Stadium." Danny lost all interest in what he was looking at. Mac's tone wasn't accusatory or angry; Danny couldn't pinpoint what he heard.

"The one that Zabo told you about over the phone?"

"Yeah."

Danny took a few moments to gather his thoughts. He had to go back and think about the relationship he and his brother had. He had to think about his own future and needed to start talking.

"My older brother, Louie, was a Tanglewood boy. Been running with Sonny Sassone for God knows how long, but as I said before, I never ran with those boys…except that one night." He filled Mac in on the happenings of that night. He told him how he took off after his brother hit him and that they guy was still very alive when he left.

Mac could see how distraught Danny was.

"I believe you." The words hit Danny like a ton of bricks. It was these words, that he didn't hear a year ago when he was involved in shooting where a cop was killed. No one stood up for him, gave him any encouragement or told him things would be alright. Danny knew what was coming next. "I have no choice, you're going to be placed on modified assignment. Duty captain will relieve you. You'll be assigned to a desk, no gun, no shield. At some point he's gonna want to talk to us both. You'll be assigned to the rubber gun squad. You sit at your desk and you keep your mouth shut 'til the evidence collaborates your story."

**

News and rumors spread very quickly through the lab. Everyone worked trying to clear Danny but things seemed ominous when the duty captain stepped off the elevator.

**

"Lindsay Monroe." She answered.

"Linds, its Don." The sound of his voice made her blood run cold, plus he'd said 'Don' not and not 'Flack'

"Don, what's going on?" She turned away from her students to listen.

Flack filled her in. He told her about the body, the evidence, and the current status of Danny. Each detail made her cringe. As someone who knew the job and knew Danny, she understood that this was killing him. She also knew that with his brother involved, the situation was twice as bad.

"Linds, I don't know if he will call you, but I just wanted to let you know. I will keep you updated as things change."

"Should I call him?" Her heart was torn on what to do.

"I don't know the answer to that. I don't know what he would say or even if he would answer the phone."

"Thanks for calling, Don."

"No problem." And the call ended.

**

She wished Flack hadn't called. Lindsay couldn't concentrate on the rest of the day. She wanted to dial Danny's number and talk to him. She wanted to leave school and go to the lab and see him.

The school day came to an end and she still hadn't heard from him. Walking out the front door of the building she had to make a decision about which way to go. Left went home; right took her to the lab.

**

She sat at home, staring at her phone, almost daring it to ring. Lindsay hadn't moved in forty minutes and still had her jacket on. She got up from the couch and went to change into something more comfortable than the clothes she wore to school that day. The moment she stepped through the doorway to her bedroom, her phone started to ring and vibrate its way off the table.

"Monroe."

"Is Danny with you?" Flack sounded out of breath.

"No, why." Danny was missing? What else happened?

"We just got a report from the hospital that someone beat his brother pretty bad, but we cannot find Danny anywhere."

"Don, you find him and call me." It didn't need to be said, it was a given.

"You got it."

**

Lindsay finally got changed. Piling her keys, a sweatshirt, and her purse together by the door she sat on the couch and watched her phone again.

She knew Danny and Louie hadn't gotten along for a while, but Louie was his brother and the past didn't matter when something like this happens. Lindsay tried to imagine was their mother was going through. She could hardly stand the thought of his mother sitting at Louie bedside. In her experience, grieving mothers were the worst.

She worried about Danny, never had she seen him in a situation like this. She didn't know what kind of support he needed and it was worse because he had not called. Where was he, what was he thinking, she was going stir crazy. She picked up her phone and dialed.

"Stella, its Lindsay."

"How's Danny holding up?" Stella asked.

"I'm not with him. What hospital did they talk Louie to?" She listened while Stella gave her the information. "Thanks, if I find him I will let everyone know."

She made another call to Flack telling him she was heading to the hospital to see if Danny would show up.

**

Don met her outside the ER.

"Danny's here, you were right." Flack spoke in hushed even tones. "He's falling apart and Mac doesn't want him left alone. I may need you to stay with him, I told Mac I would, but I want to be out there helping with the case."

"No problem, give me a minute to make a few calls and I'll meet you inside."

**

Flack and Danny stood outside surgery bay where Louie was being worked on when she entered.

"Lindsay thanks for coming down." Flack's words were sincere and announced her presence to Danny. Approaching him, she didn't say a word; she just stood next to him. He was still focused on the room in front of him. Carefully she took his hand in hers. He looked down at their hands and then to her face.

What she saw there broke her. The sparkle she loved in his eyes was gone and instead they were tired and red. He looked lost and empty. His eyes were still focused on her when her hand went to the side of his face and Lindsay whispered, "hey." Sobs shook his body and she folded him into her body. She held him as tight as her arms would let her. Flack's sympathetic face met hers over Danny's shoulder. The two moved to a couch in the hall and she eased them down. Emotion poured out with his tears.

"Don where are you on this?" Lindsay needed the rest of the story before he disappeared. Danny might not be able to tell her anything any time soon.

"We know that Mac questioned Louie earlier about that night in '91. Louie then went to Sonny Sassone to talk. Sonny laid it all out for Louie, told the whole story. Then some of Sonny's boys found Louie and beat him…bad. Linds, Louie was wearing a wire, it was in his stuff when he got here. It has the voice of Sonny clearing Danny." She nodded while listening to Flack and still being aware of any change in Danny. "The tape…Lindsay…it also recorded the beating. Louie wasn't supposed to survive." His voice was cautious and hushed. "He almost lost his life clearing him."

She thanked Flack silently with a look and focused back on the man in her arms who was now staring off into space. There was nothing she could say or do to help him. She just sat and held onto him.

**

Lindsay waited in the hall when Danny stepped into Louie's room. She could tell through the window that he was still holding on by a thread. She watched a wide range of emotions morph across his face as he stood next to his brother's bed and spoke at length. She hurt for him so much. When he moved back to the door, she met him there.

"I'm gonna get some air. I'll be right back." Head hung low, he disappeared down the hall.

**

"Hey Louie, Danny just stepped out to get some air. He'll be back. He's a mess right now." She felt strange talking to him like this, but maybe he heard. "I didn't want you to be left in here all by yourself so I thought I would come in and sit with you." She paused for a moment. "I have no words that would ever thank you enough for what you did for your brother. I don't know if there are any words in existence." Spotting a chair in the corner, she pulled it closer to the bed. "He's become a huge part of my life very quickly. And his job is his life." She heard Mac's voice from down the hall. He came to the door with Danny not far behind. "Hey Mac…Danny how you feelin'?" She could tell that his eyes were redder than they were when he left the room.

His shoulders raised in a noncommittal shrug. "Mac's staying for a while so I can run home and clean up. Our parents will be here in the morning." She was grateful for Mac at that moment.

"Was that your truck outside?" The question was directed at Danny.

"Yeah." Danny replied.

"You have an extra set of clothes in it like a good boy scout?" The humor in the question was needed, not as much for him, but for the whole situation.

"Yeah."

She turned to Mac. "We're going to my place. It's closer." Her number and address were handed over to the boss. "Danny you can clean up there and maybe even get some rest. We'll comeback first thing tomorrow morning." Mac agreed quietly.

"Don't you have school tomorrow?" He was still thinking about her even with everything that was going on around him.

"I called out, they'll get a sub." There would be no arguing with her tonight. There was something in the tone of her voice that told him not to try.

"Fine, I'm too tired to question anything right now. Mac you good?"

"I'm good Danny, you go."

Lindsay already had her arm linked with his. "Thanks Mac."

**

Danny was shooed into the bathroom as soon as they hit the door. She busied herself straightening the apartment just to have something to do.

"Hey, come get in bed with me." She hadn't heard the shower turn off or him moving around in the apartment. But now he stood in boxers and a t-shirt, ready for bed.

"Just waiting on you."

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You know the drill. Please read and review. Thanks.


	19. Chapter 19

Document upload was down for a while. I wish I'd gotten this up a few hours ago. But here it is. Tell me what you think.

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True to her word, Lindsay had Danny back in the truck on their way to the hospital first thing the next morning. She was dreading the conversation with Danny's parents. Where would the conversation start? What did they already know? It really didn't matter, it all ended the same way with Louie laying in a hospital bed in a coma. Her job was to support Danny in anything that he needed. She had no obligation to anyone else. It was going to be a long day.

Hand in hand they entered Louie's room, and were surprised by what they saw: a doctor and nurse stood on one side of the bed, Danny's parents stood on the other side and Mac was at the foot of the bed. They were having a serious conversation. The two new comers stopped just inside the door to listen.

"…it's too early to tell. There's still a lot of swelling. It's going to take time."

A break in the conversation allowed them to enter the room and approach the bed. Danny broke away from Lindsay to greet his parents. He was unsure of what kind of reception he would get and was hesitant.

"Hey Mommy, Morning pop." The hug his mother gave him was one of comfort. Lindsay and Mac stepped into the hall.

"How'd it go last night?" Lindsay asked once they were away from the room?

"Nurses were in every fifteen minutes so sleep was out, but other than that, no change."

"When did their parents get here?"

"They've been here for about an hour. I was surprised to see them here so early." Mac squeezed the bridge of his nose and rubbed his eyes.

Time for the question of the hour. "What do they know?"

"Everything. Between the doctor's and me, they know everything. I didn't want Danny to have to tell his parents about anything. He was an innocent bystander in all this. He did not need to be the one to tell the story. That would have been too much." Mac stopped and looking into the room where Danny and his family were. "He's got today and tomorrow off and then the weekend. I have his shield and gun in my office. I want you to come by and get them later today. He's been through a lot in the last 36 hours alone. If you can, stay with him and take care of him."

The breath was knocked out of him when the small woman attacked with a hug that would knock out a bear.

"Thank you Mac, Danny is lucky to have you around."

**

"What are you thinking?" Danny asked at the end of the day. His parents told him that sitting next to Louie was not going to speed things along. They convinced him to go home and come back the next day. She was driving. There was take out between them and a hastily packed bag from him place behind them.

"Lots of things. I love you. I would give anything to erase the last two days. I wonder what I can do to help you. I wonder how you are holding up. I'm thinking about getting us back to my place and locking out the world for a while. I am thinking about the vast amounts of support your friends have given you. My brain is a jumble of many things."

He listened patiently, hearing each word.

"You have helped so much already. Every second with me has helped. I appreciate everything you have already done. Just hang with me. I am doing much better after talking with my parents this morning. I already felt so much guilt about what happened, but they apologized to me for what Louie had gotten me into. That was the biggest relief of the day. I am also looking forward to a night with you. I think we'll eat, find something to watch on TV and then I will fall right to sleep." He stopped and started to get emotional. "Mac talked to my parents for me…told them about Tanglewood Boys, Louie's part, why he's lying in a hospital bed in a coma. He did ti so that I would not have to."

"He did it because he cares Danny. He knew what you had been through. He knew that it would help if he stepped in and helped you."

"I have the next three days off." He told her.

"What do you want to do?"

"I don't know, are you working tomorrow?"

"I don't have to. Today was the first day I've taken all year so I can take another."

"I'd hate to ask you to do that." She could tell that he really wanted to do the opposite.

"You're not asking, I'm offering."

"Then please take the day. We can always find something to do."

**

Things were getting back to normal over the next week. Danny had cancelled their plans twice again due to work. Each time he did, she would leave school and 'visit' Louie for a little while at the hospital. His parents there were one night and they talked for a long time.

The second night she was there, Louie had another visitor.

Lindsay was sitting and talking to Louie when someone else started talking. "Danno bail on you again?" Don Flack stood close to the door.

"Yeah, he was talking about wrapping up a case with a bank executive and prostitutes who didn't call themselves prostitutes. Something he and Stella were working on when this happened. He'll appreciate knowing that you stopped by." The look on Flack's face changed.

"I'm here for another reason. Stella was attacked last night by her boyfriend at her apartment. She's a few floors up. A nurse asked me to step out so she could examine her and get some evidence. I thought I'd come in and see Louie. Any change?"

"Not yet, but we need to stop meeting in this place. It's kinda creepy that the last two times I have seen you have been here in the hospital. How's Stella?" Lindsay hated the look of despair that Flack wore on his face.

"She's a little foggy on the details so far. But we'll get through. She'll have a lot of hoops to go through before Mac lets her come back. Especially since she shot and killed Frankie."

"She killed him? How badly did she come out?" She was more concerned for Flack. He was trying to pass it all off as another case, but his face told another story. The more he talked, more of the story was coming out about both Stella. Lindsay could see how it affected him personally.

"Cuts, bruises, nothing permanent, but a lot of psychological."

"Let her know that if she needs anything to just call."

"I will do that. They're gonna be a while, you wanna hit the cafeteria, grab a bite to eat?"

**

"Alright Flack what's on your mind?" Lindsay had been watching him and picked up on a few clues.

"Monroe, what makes you think something is on my mind?"

"You've been pushing food around your place, you suggested this impromptu meal and you almost looked relieved to see me sitting in Louie's room."

Defeated, he set his fork down on the tray in front of him. "I'm about to go up into that hospital room and question Stella about an attack that happened to _her_ in _her_ apartment by _her_ boyfriend. She's always been strong enough, tough enough, fast enough and now I have to go back in a few minutes and sit in front of her cut and battered body and help her put the story together of how she ended up where she is." His head shook barely. "I'm not sure I can do that."

"Fine," she shrugged, "call one of the other detectives to come down." She was trying to get him to think about this.

"I wouldn't trust anyone else."

Her attitude changed. "Okay, go up and do your best. Walk her through it slowly, if not for her, than for you. Let her remember things from clues you find. If she cannot recall a detail, she may not be ready to hear it yet. Be patient. Don't lay out too many of the facts. Let her come up with what happened. Don't tell her what happened _to_ her. It's easier that way."

His eyes moved around the room, taking in what she just said. "Thanks, I'm going to head back up. Tell Danny 'hi' when you talk to him later."

"If you or Stella need anything, just call us."

**

"Love you Cowboy." She sent to Danny moments after Flack had left and she got a response almost immediately.

"Love you too. You home?"

"No, I'm about to head that way."

"From?" She hadn't told him she'd been going by the hospital after school but it looked like her secret was about to come out.

"Hospital." Before she could set her phone down on the table to wait for his response it rang. "Hel.."

"Are you okay? The hospital, first Louie, then Stella, and now you're there too. What's wrong? I'm on my way over." He was frantic. He was panicked. He hadn't taken a breath and it was making her dizzy.

"Danny Messer, shut up."

"Oookay." She'd have to remember that for the future.

"I'm at the hospital visiting Louie." She purposely made her words sluggish, hoping to calm him down. "I ran into Flack."

"You're visiting Louie, why?"

"Well, the hospital is between school and home. I had plans to go out, they fell through. So I came here. Flack stopped in to see your brother while they were processing Stella. Danny I'm sorry to hear about Stella. If there is anything that I can do to help out, let me know." To her it sounded all rational to Lindsay, but after a few seconds there was no reply.

Danny was having a moment in his brain. Lindsay was visiting Louie, Flack stopped by, not knowing that Lindsay was there. He had some really good people in his life.

"Danny you still there?" Maybe she had said or done something wrong.

"You said you were just about to head home?"

"Yeah, I am just finishing up dinner." The tray in front of her was empty.

"Can I stay with you tonight?"

"Yeah, any reason why you're wanting to stay over?"

"Do I need one?"

"No," she said and paused to think about it, "no you don't. I'm on my way home. Are you out?" She tried to balance everything and make her way to the garbage and then the exit.

"Yeah, I'm out. I'm about to turn into the hospital, I'll grab you and we can head to your place."

"I'll be out front."

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Horray for you. I am so honored by the numbers. You like this, you really really like this. If you do, let me know. To my regulars who review, I love hearing from you. Thank you so much. I am trying to get back to people. If I dont get back to you, please forgive me. I am on a roll and writing at every moment.

If you are a lurker and enjoy reading it, please keep it up and thank you.

I do not seen an end yet and some heavy stuff is coming up (Aiden and Flack blowing up.)

Enjoy!!!


	20. Chapter 20

A funny thing happened on the way to the publishing house today. I read a review and realized that I forgot to mention Stealing Home in this chapter. Oops. Today I did a total rewrite on this chapter (at work, hehehe). Hope it all works the way I wrote it.

A huge thank you to all of my reviewers. I have a core of people who let me know what they think. Thank you so very much.

Here we are at 20 chapters. With the hits, reviews, favorites, and alerts I have been impressed by you. Thank you for taking your time and reading.

Please review and let me know what you think.

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Whenever Danny had an interesting case, Lindsay heard all about it. He called her in the middle of the day and made arrangements for her to stop by the lab after school. A short while later the text messages started.

"I caught a whopper in the East River today." She thought he just meant a dead body.

"I've never seen one of this species." He couldn't figure out what he was talking about.

By the end of the afternoon, his tune started to change.

"I had to throw it back. Nothing to see." She'd never known him to back down like that.

His text messages ended.

At the end of her day, she sent him a text. "I'm on my way to see you. Meet me in the lobby."

**

He wrapped her in a huge embrace.

"Danny, what's going on, you were so excited and then…"

"We caught a mermaid this morning in the river and the case had just baffled us."

Incredulous, "A mermaid, come on, Danny, they don't exist."

"The mermaid that we pulled out of the river proves you wrong. Right now she's a Jane Doe. Flack's out chasing a check we found in her costume. She had $100 bill in her bra. Sid found strange scarring and calluses on her hands. They looked like yours," he turned her hands, palm side up, and rubbed his thumbs over the scarred areas, "but different."

"Can I see them? Would you mind? Maybe I can help." His phone was out before she finished her request.

"Sid, hey, I'd like to bring Lindsay down and look at Jane Doe's hands." Lindsay could not hear the other end of the conversation, but Danny blushed and then said, "You finally get to meet her." And he hung up.

"And what was that all about?" She tried to get him to blush again with the way she asked but it didn't work.

"Sid has wanted to meet you for a long time. He gave me a hard time about using the excuse of seeing a dead body to get you down there."

"Let's not keep the man or the body waiting."

**

Lindsay was very impressed at the layout of the autopsy bays. Nothing at home could compare to what they had in here. "Wow, this is nice."

"We aim to please." Sid came around a corner and greeted them. Danny led Lindsay over to a table with the Jane Doe. "You must be Lindsay Monroe."

"That I am and you must be Sid." He bowed at the introduction. "And this must be your Jane Doe." Lindsay noticed how Sid had only her hands exposed. Her face and the rest of her body were still covered by the sheet.

"Yes, she was found in the East River, no water in her lungs…" Sid was interrupted.

"Petechial hemorrhage in the eyes?" Sid looked up at her and then at Danny. The younger man shrugged his shoulders.

"Um…yeah. Not used to someone coming down and stealing my thunder. There were bruises on around her throat indicating strangulation. I would guess that she was strangled on dry land and dumped in the river. But this is what Danny wanted you to see." He raised one of the girl's hands and showed her the marks that Danny thought he recognized. She quietly laughed.

"Those are from rawhide braiding."

"What?" Sid had never heard of such a thing.

Lindsay started talking. "Weaving together untanned hides, to make reins for horses, lassoes to herd cattle." Lindsay showed Sid her hands. He saw the very faded marks. "The friction and the pressure from the leather cuts you up pretty good. My dad taught me when I was ten."

"So our Jane Doe was a county girl." Danny stated.

**

"I hate cases like that." It was said at the front door when he got to Lindsay's. In a huff he ripped off his jacket, slammed his keys down on the counter, and…you gotta be careful with the gun and phone and he remembered that at the very last moment, but he eased them out of their places and set them on the counter near his keys.

"What happened after I left?" She was pulling things together for a late dinner.

"Sarah Butler was murdered for nothing, no reason, no motive, no nothing. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. We got the guy. He followed her and killed her." He shook his head slightly. "What pisses me off is that he didn't have a reason why. We asked and asked and he never gave a reason why. Totally senseless. I hate days like this."

**

A week went by and the first ten days of May were gone. Warm days were a constant, and Lindsay spent more and more time outside. The park was her favorite place to be after school when she wasn't with Danny or visiting Louie. Things slowed down. She was looking forward to summer break because she was going to be teaching, but not during the whole time. She had students coming in to learn about science and math, pretty much it was what her afternoon classes learned, but at a much faster pace. Thoughts of what she was going to teach already started to formulate: solar power, radiant heat, how to stay cool, maybe more about baseball. The possibilities were endless and they were going to have fun.

**

That annoying sound was his phone. He was sure that only Lindsay could be this cruel. Finding it, he answered.

"Montana, if you're gonna wake me up this early, after I've working all night, you could at least have the common courtesy to do it in person and maybe with kisses and coffee."  
"Danny, check your caller ID before you start talking."

"Sorry Mac." Danny ran a hand over his face and scratched the back of his head. "Wha d'ya need boss?"

"You at work a couple of hours early. Meet me at Central Park, dead Marine Corporal. Follow the emergency vehicles and you'll find us."

"On my way." He sat up and started another day.

**

It was a noticeably beautiful clear spring day. Danny thought about calling and meeting Lindsay for dinner and a walk later after work. Too bad someone had to ruin this day with murder.

**

In the lab, hours later, Danny was processing Corporal Price's belongings when he got paged.

"A\V lab…now!"

Fear set in, he couldn't think of anything in his past that would warrant that message. Dropping the items that he was working with, he went that way.

Danny was surprised to see Hawkes and Stella already standing there with Mac. He stepped in behind Stella and watched as the images on the screens were moved around. Then..he realized what they were being told.

Aiden was the unidentified Jane Doe who had been beaten to death and burned.

Hanging his head, he left the room and went to the office and fell into his desk chair. He couldn't wrap his head around what just happened. Forensically he was just shown that the skull that was sitting in the A\V lab on the table…used to be Aiden.

Then he hurt, physically hurt. It started in his chest and it swallowed him whole. Flack could see Danny through the glass. He could see the anguish that was washing over his friend. This could be as bad as Louie, maybe worse. Flack knew what he had to do.

**

She hadn't heard from Danny all day. It wasn't that unusual, but at the end of the day when she still hadn't heard anything she picked up the phone on her desk. A figure darkened her door before the numbers were dialed. The sight of him at the door reminded her of all the visits she made as a detective, informing the next of kin of a death in the family.

"Don, what's wrong, where's Danny, I haven't heard from him all day." She was panicking. Something was wrong and Don was there to tell her.

The words that came out of Flack's mouth next, she would remember for the rest of her life. "Danny is fine, but he's gonna need you close." She already was packed up and on her way out the door with him.

"You know, I am really starting to hate you. I've seen a lot of you lately under really bad circumstances." They hurried to the car and made the short trip to the lab.

**

Why couldn't they take those images off the screens? Why couldn't Sid come and get Aiden's skull and put it with the rest of her body; why was she just a body now? Why did he just sit in his office and start at them?

He spun the chair around and called Lindsay. He was going to have to tell her sooner or later that their dinner plans for the weekend were off and that Aiden was dead. He hoped that he could keep his emotions under control long enough.

**

They were in the elevator. He told her vague details about what happened. To see how bad it was, she was going to have to see him.

"Don, you're ringing."

"No, Linds that's you."

What did we ever do before caller ID.

"Hey, Cowboy."

The elevator would never be able to go fast enough for what she heard. "Aiden's dead." Those were the words, but the pain, hurt, hollowness that she heard were words than the words.

"Where are you?"

"Work." It was more of a sigh than a word."

"Where at work?" The words were even and controlled, calm and comforting.

"My desk."

"I'll see you in a couple of seconds." The call ended. His arm dropped to his leg. She was on her way, some how, that made things a little better.

**

Late, late that night, Lindsay went home at the instance of Danny. He was going back out to interview possible suspects about the case he and Mac were working and she needed to get some sleep somewhere other than the couch in the office.

"You have been a life saver just by being here. Now I want you to go home and get some sleep. I will call when things change."

**

They all worked into the predawn hours of the next day. Questioning D.J. Pratt didn't take long after the booking photos were looked at. The rest of the day was spent tying up loose ends. Lindsay got very little sleep that night, waiting to hear from Danny, but that call wouldn't come until around noon while she was at school.

"Aiden's case is over. Team's going out for a drink after work in honor of Aiden. I'm coming over after. I miss you."

Relief washed over her after she heard from him. She went straight home after school and took a nap, trying to catch up from the sleepless night before. She didn't know what the night would bring.

**

At 9:30 that night she was refreshed from her long nap and was reading and waiting for his arrival. Sudden pounding on her door was the indicator she was waiting for. Checking the peep hole, she slightly cringed at what she saw.

The door had to be opened fully to let both Flack and a very wobbly Danny through.

"He wouldn't let me take him to his place. Kept tell me that he was supposed to be here." Flack set Danny down on the couch. Lindsay could smell the alcohol on Danny and stale smoke on both of them. "He really didn't drink that much, but he's been up for almost," he checked his watch, "forty hours."

"How about you Don, how are you?" She looked back at Danny knowing that she would be taking care of him, but she wondered who would be taking care of Don.

"I'll be fine, but I gotta run. Stella's in the car waiting to be dropped off."

"Stella?" She gave him a knowing look.

"What?"

"Take care of each other." Lindsay really didn't care how, just as long as the order was followed.

"It's what we all do. I'll call tomorrow and check on him." He left.

The lump on her couch was awake, but barely. "Hey, you planning on sleeping on my couch or in my bed?"

"Bed."

"Then you have got to clean yourself up first, come on. Shower time."

She leaned in and turned on the shower while he underdressed a little under snail speed. His coordination was off; it was like watching a toddler wrestle with an octopus and come out on the losing end.

"Okay as much as I'm enjoying this little show, I want to be in bed before the 4th of July, let me help." She got him stripped and under the water. A few minutes passed and she peeked in at him. He was just standing there and the water was hitting him in the face and he was almost asleep.

Lindsay carefully removed her clothes and slipped in behind him. This was something out of a fantasy: naked in the shower with Danny, they had not done this before, but in her fantasy he was lucid and taking a more active role.

Pouring shampoo into her hands, she started washing the smoke out of his hair. He tried to turn around, but her soapy hands stilled him. "Let me do this for you." Loving hands worked through his hair. She nudged him slightly, he stepped under the water, and the suds cascaded off his head and down his body. She worked more lather up on top of his head, wanting to make sure that all traces of the night were washed off. She trailed soap down the back of his neck and across his shoulders. She pushed him again to step under the water. Drizzling body wash into a poof, she made quick work of the rest of him.

"I'm getting out. Take your time. I'll find some clothes."

"Thank you." He sounded so hollow.

"I love you, so anytime."

**

He barely got his clothes on before he passed out. A bucket was place on the floor on his side of the bed, just in case. Lindsay had to laugh; he had a side of the bed, which was his. His book was there that he was reading, some of his stuff was in the small drawer. She placed extra strength Tylenol and a glass of water there for when he got up. She man handled him into a good position and covered him up before falling asleep on her side.

**

_Good morning,_

_If it weren't Friday; if it weren't test day; if science projects were not due today I would stay home with you. If you feel up to it, come by school. Call me when you wake up. –Montana_

_PS. Mac said he'd call if he needed you today otherwise he didn't want to see you._

_PPS. The key is yours – lock up if you leave before I get home._

_PPPS. Love you._

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_You know what is coming up in the next chapter, can you say, boom?_

_Please read and review._


	21. Chapter 21

YOU ROCK!!!!! Thank you for the over 15,000 hits and the 169 reviews (Last time I checked). Here is the end of Season 2. I have written through the summer and through the next 9 chapters. Let me know you like it. I still have more to come.

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'Saturday in the park, I think it was the 4th of July.' Someone's radio blared near their picnic spot in Central Park.

"Its Saturday, we're in the park, but its only May." Danny explained over Lindsay's shoulder and into her ear from his seated position behind her.

Their spring walk that Danny planned the day Aiden was killed finally happened the next Saturday and it wasn't just a walk it was a full blown day at the park with food. They needed it; time together that is, not the food.

"How crazy is this place on the 4th of July?" She asked.

They deserved this day to themselves. He showed up at her door with a fully stocked basket. Now she sat between his legs and back against his chest. His arms loosely wrapped around her waist. She quietly waited for his answer and watched the people in the park.

"I don't come here unless I'm sent. Wall to wall bodies, mostly alive, sometimes not." He leaned forward to see her face. "What are you doing this summer, you have a month left of school, then what are you going to do with the other months?" _Please not go home, please not go home._ He thought.

"School's out at the end of June and then I'm teaching summer school for two weeks in July, and I have graduation in August…"

"August, I thought it was at the end of this month."

"I pushed one of my final classes off until summer. I will have a total of about 3 weeks off. I'm staying here all summer long. You won't be able to get rid of me."

"Fantastic." His grip tightened.

**

Sunday had become their day. Lindsay had come to appreciate the fine art of sleeping in with Danny on Sundays, cuddling a bit before dragging out to the coffee machine and slow deep kisses that usually led to much, much more. After the breakfast, the Sunday paper covered the coffee table; the comics and sports section were down at his end of the table and everything else on hers. The newspaper was read all the way through by them collectively. They'd fill the rest day with whatever came to mind, but it was always spent together.

"Linds…" she looked up at him from the article she was reading, "hand me my phone, its going off." He checked the caller ID before answering. "Hey Stella."

"Danny." Lindsay could hear Stella's voice as she talked urgently into Dannys ear. She watched his face for any indication of what was going on. "We have a 10-33. Mac and Flack are unaccounted for. Bring Lindsay, we might be able to use her." The hair on the back of her neck stood on end at the look in Danny's eyes. The call ended. Then beeped with a text message full of information he would need to find her at the scene. Danny was off the couch, shouting information as he started getting ready.

"Explosion, Don and Mac are missing, you've been asked to come along. Get dressed. Long sleeves, long pants, and bring extra clothes, I don't know how long the day is going to be.

They went into action.

**

The three block, taped off zone was a mad house of agencies hovering around. Ambulances lined up along the street waiting four survivors. Make shift first aid stations helped with the injured. In the middle of it all was Stella.

Danny escorted Lindsay under the yellow tape and towards the woman in charge.

"Stella…" Danny started.

"Oh, good, Danny you're with search and rescue. Go." He ran off to find the squad. "Lindsay put this on." A blue jacket with 'CSI:NY Police Dept.' printed on the back was thrown her way. "Now at least you look official. Maybe they won't ask too many questions. Stay close I may need you."

**

Through the smoke and dust people started coming out of the destroyed building, but no news came through about the two downed officers. Lindsay's instructions were to hang out by Stella and direct people until further notice.

The waiting ambulances were doing their job and drove away with people inside. People scurried around reporting here, checking there, sharing whatever information they had. She checked her phone when it shook.

"Mac and Don Found. Flack injured. Will alert when bringing out."

"Stella." She called and the two women huddled around the small screen, reading the message.

"Okay…if Flack is injured enough to go to the hospital, I need you to go with him. I want one of our guys to stay with him but I can't spare anyone here."

"Got it." Stella went back to work organizing and listening to the progress from the different people who were reporting to her. It was a confused mass of people and information. Dust hung in the air around them still.

Everyone watched the paramedics with a stretcher enter the building. She and Stella knew it would be for Flack. But they didn't know how bad it was. Lindsay kept checking her phone waiting for waiting for word about when they were going to be coming out. The waiting was horrible. Another ambulance left with lights and sirens. Twenty minutes passed, then another ten. She'd become so still that the vibrate of her phone startled her.

"They're coming out." It told her. She went on alert.

"Hey Stella, they're coming out." She hollered making her way to the front of the building. Stella and Lindsay met at the base of the steps and movement at the front door caught both women's attentions. The end of a stretcher emerged from the blackness that was now the interior of the building. It seemed to float on nothing as it emerged into the sunlight. Two paramedics appeared from the darkness next, holding onto the rails and carrying duffle bags of equipment. Mac and Danny came out holding onto the stretcher near Flack's head. Their eyes were focused on the ground as they walked. Stella noticed the blood down the side of Mac's shirt. Neither Mac nor Danny made any eye contact with anyone.

"Lindsay this does not look good." Stella tried to catch Mac's eye, but he avoided it at every cost.

The procession passed the two women and they got their first look at Don's face and what Stella saw scared her. Without taking her eyes off of the man who had become very close she spoke to Lindsay. "You're with Don. Update me about everything."

"You got it." Lindsay passed Danny on the way to the ambulance and gave his arm a reassuring squeeze.

**

"Arrived at hospital." Stella received from Lindsay.

"Into surgery." Was the next message.

Lindsay sent to Danny next. "Louie says hi." She'd send him that note whenever she went to see Louie.

Hours later this came to Stella. "Flack out of surgery. Still sleeping. Send someone for clothes and other stuff." Stella did not need to know that the other stuff included pieces of the bomb that were lodged into Flack's chest.

"Mac will be there, he needs to take photos."

"I'll be here and keep you updated." And the waiting started again.

**

"Lindsay…Hey Lindsay." Mac carefully woke her up. The bench outside his recovery room was where she landed to wait and then fell asleep.

"Hey Mac…" She jolted awake and looked around. "How is he?"

"He's still out, they're moving him to a room soon. You gonna stay with him or do you have somewhere else to be?"

"No, I'm not going anywhere." She quickly sent a text to let Stella know that Mac was there.

Mac smiled. It was the first smile she'd seen in hours. "Thank you for your help today."

"Anything I can do, I will." She would be going out of her mind if she was sitting at home waiting to hear. At least this way, she could help.

"Okay, I have to get this stuff back to the lab. If anything happens you let us know. Once things settle down we'll be back."

He was almost to the door when Lindsay called to him. "Mac, how's Danny?"

His heart broke. The deep concern that she had for Danny was so clear.

"His best friend was injured and is laying in a hospital bed. He's thrown himself into his work so that he doesn't have to deal. When this is over, he'll be a mess.

**

The skies got darker. She could feel someone else enter Flack's room. The magazine she was reading was forgotten the moment she got a good look at who it was.

"Can I help you?" She asked the man at the door.

"How is he?"

"Well he's resting. He was involved in a bombing late this morning. He's been through hours of surgery and he'll have a long recovery in front of him. Hopefully, he can get back to doing the job he loves soon."

"You a cop?" The man's eyes never left the figure laying in the bed.

"No."

"Girlfriend?"

Lindsay had to laugh at the suggestion. "No." The man gave her an odd look. "I'm a friend. I've known Flack for about eight months. Met him through Danny Messer."

"Messer, that kid's still hanging around?" She nodded.

"Now, can I help you, or are you just going to stand there and stare at your son?" For the first time, the man looked at Lindsay.

"You sure you're not a cop?"

"I was one in a past life." The man still hadn't moved from the spot. "You have the same chin, eyes, hair, and body stance that Flack has. Plus you're not young enough to be an older brother."

"Why are you sitting with him?"

"He's my friend. We met through Danny and I have become close friends with the CSI's working his case. They are all out there investigating, so I said I'd stay with him until they can come back later." Lindsay found the whole situation strange. She rose from the rocking chair the nurses brought in. "I'll go and let you sit with him for a while."

"That won't be necessary. I was just stopping by to check on him quickly. What did the doctor's say?"

"More tests tomorrow and then when he wakes up they will start talking about physical therapy."

"Okay, thank you." The gentleman turned to leave.

"Should I tell him you were here?"

"No, I'll call him soon." And he left.

**

They sky was totally dark. Lindsay had been there late into the night. The nurses had been in and out of his room more often than not. Stella better watch out if there really was something between her and Flack. Sometimes two nurses would come in…and the things they said about the way Flack looked made her blush: his baby face, soft skis, sculpted arms and upper chest. Lindsay had to laugh at them. One thing she was sure of, Flack was being well cared for.

"Montana." She turned to see a very tired Danny Messer come into the room followed by Sheldon and Stella, and lastly Mac. They all filed into the small room where Flack was. Danny found comfort in Lindsay's arms when she stood. Stella took the seat by Flack's side in the rocking chair and took Flack's hand in hers.

"How's the case coming?" She smoothed her hands over Danny's forehead and down his cheeks. He's obviously had time for a quick shower. His hair was still damp. He may have been clean, but his eyes screamed that he was tired.

"It was Lessing, long story. How's Flack?"

She spoke loud enough for everyone to hear and turned in Danny's arms to face the others. "Not much. He's been stable. Doctor's have some tests planned for tomorrow. Crazy amounts of nurses have come in to check on him, and the things they've said had nothing to do with his medical condition."

Stella let out a weak laugh at Lindsay's comment and then continued. "You know, he's on round the clock care. You don't all have to stay and stand watch." It was said with no question whether she was staying or not. She would be there no matter what.

"No, the nurses are doing a fine job of that on their own." Lindsay uttered under her breath.

Mac ignored the comment. "No, we don't have to."

"True." Stella stated.

Mac looked at the woman who wouldn't be moving from Flack's side any time soon. "Black coffee, two sugars right?" She nodded at him and he stepped into the hall. Danny and Lindsay followed with Hawkes on their heels.

"Think I'm gonna go talk with the neurologist; find out what time his cat scan's scheduled." He waved off and left.

"You still want that ride." It was more of a statement than a question. There was no doubt that he wanted her by his side tonight.

"Yeah, sure." Lindsay looked in at Stella and Flack one more time. Stella held Flack's hand and traced the veins with the other. She was talking to him. There was a soft look about her and she kissed the back of his hand. Lindsay looked back at Danny's boss. "Night Mac."

"Call if anything changes, okay?" Danny put an arm around Lindsay and saw the okay sign out the corner of his eye.

**

There had been silence in the truck. It had been a long, trying, emotional day. There had been too many of these lately.

Lindsay tossed around the idea of talking to Danny about Don Flack Sr. coming to the hospital. The whole encounter seemed odd to her. He just appeared, talked for a few moments and then was gone. There was no emotion in his words or features. The line of questioning was strange even. There must have been a lot more to this story and neither had the energy to go into it tonight.

"You're awfully quiet. What are you thinking?"

"Nothing that can't wait until another time." She kissed the back of his hand, in much the same way she saw Stella do. "Do you know if anything is going on between Don and Stell?" She held his hand close to her lips.

"I know something is there, but I don't know what it is. I could see it being a very deep friendship. I could see it being a close sibling type of thing, or it could be true love. I don't know. But whatever it is, they both need it. The people in the lab are Stella's only family." Danny went on to tell Lindsay about Stella's background and past. She listened taking it all in. "Where we stayin' tonight?"

"Mine."

"You got it."

**

There's nothing in the world like being washed clean of a bad day, a fresh t-shirt that belongs to your boyfriend, and soft sheets against your skin. The only thing that can make it better is if you can add to that, the strong hands of Danny Messer holding you close to his chest. The top it off with the sweet words of love and appreciation that he was murmuring and you might have the perfect recipe for the best ending to the worst day.

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Making it to the end of Season 2 would have not have happened without you watching the show first and then reading another version. During the summer hiatas some things will happen, graduation, rest from the last few episodes, Flack's come back, and much more. Watch for more coming in the next day or so.


	22. Chapter 22

Hello Dublin. You made my night last night.

There's a lot going on in this chapter, but I wanted to move along through the summer and into season three...so here we go!!!

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Okay, she was never going to say it or think it again. It's burned her lately. Every time that she finally thought it, something went wrong. She was never…ever…ever going to say that things were getting back to normal. What as normal? Someone told Lindsay one that 'normal was just a setting on a washing machine and nothing else,' and besides that, normal was different to each person.

For the next month their 'normal' was to spend Sunday through Thursday nights at her place so that she could get up and get to work on time. And no matter when _he_ worked, she was always up and out first. Then on Friday and Saturday nights they stayed at his place. Most of her casual clothes filled space at his apartment, and his work clothes hung alongside hers in the closet. She made herself a home at his place and he made one at hers.

Nights that Danny would work late, Lindsay went to the hospital to check on Flack who was recuperating, painfully slow for his liking. He had some physical therapy and strength to rebuild before he was discharged. Lindsay was hoping that it would be soon, Flack agreed to join Danny as a chaperone on their zoo trip. Lindsay joked with Flack a lot about the crazy things he does to get out of doing favors for friends. He was always happy to see Lindsay walk through the door; their discussions never were about police work and she always told the greatest stories about the kids in her class. When a doctor, nurse or another visitor came in she would excuse herself.

She would then go and see Louie. She laughed at herself one day when she told Danny that Louie was a great listener. She got a blank stare from him in response. If Louie remembered half of what she had told him when he woke up, she was be in trouble. One afternoon she was babbling on like a monkey in a tree and realized that she was talking about Danny and the wonderful things he did with his… She flushed red and the topic changed. The next time she went to see him, she stuck to safe topics and she had John Grisham's latest book to read to him out loud.

Every once in a while she ran into Danny's Mom in Louie's room, or his mom would run into her.

She always poked her head back into Flack's room before she left to tell him good-night and see if anyone was there. She would then head home for the night.

**

Danny had become the master of Lindsay's front door. When he came in late he could get in unlocked, opened, miss the creek in the floor as he came in, got the door closed and relocked, all without making a sound. He could sneak through the apartment, get ready for bed and smoothly slide in next to Lindsay without turning on a light or disturbing her before falling asleep.

Lindsay had become the master of making it look like she hadn't waited up for him and drifted into her own slumber as soon as his arms came to rest around her.

**

"Messer."

"How is my favorite New York City Police office?"

Danny rolled his eyes at his mother. "Hi Ma. What's up?"

"You comin for dinner Sunday?"

Sunday, Sunday, was anything going on? He wasn't on call. Flack was being released on Saturday. The zoo trip was next Thursday. There was nothing going on other than a lazy day that was about to be cut in half by going to his Mom's. "Yes, I can make it. I'll have to talk to Linds. See if she wants to come."

"I already talked to her, she was coming if you were available or not." The fact that his Mom had already talked to Lindsay and that she had agreed to be there surprise him a bit.

"When did you talk to Montana?"

"Few minutes ago, she was just here."

Danny thumbed through his memory. Lindsay was going to school, visit Louie and then back home today. "You're at the hospital."

"Yes, and I ran into Lindsay again. She's such a sweet girl."

"Yes, Ma she is…wait you ran into her _again?_"

"We've run into each other quite often lately here. Do you know that she's been reading to your brother?"

"No, but it doesn't surprise me. She's there so often that she's had to run out of things to tell him." The things that woman does just keep surprising him more and more each day.

"No she hasn't run out. I've stood at the door and listened to her run on and on about her students. I've heard her talk about you, her home in Montana, why he left police work. She's always talking to him about something then when she notices me, she pretends that she was reading and then we talk. Danny you listen to your Mama, that girl is a keeper, she is something special. If something bad happens, I'm blaming you."

"Yes ma'am."

"See you Sunday." The line went dead.

He stared at his phone after the call ended for a long time. How could something ever go wrong?

**

"There's a group of about ten nurses out there cryin'; you don't know anything about that do you?" Danny had to give Flack a hard time as he walked into his friend's room about the hearts he was breaking the day of his discharge. The room was void of all the cards, balloons and flowers that cluttered the space the last time Danny was there. He hardly recognized the place when he entered. Flack sat in his room in jeans and a t-shirt from the 'Y' waiting to go home. "Hey Flack you're looking good."

Don batted his eyes at his friend. "Thank you, I wore this just for you." Joking aside. "Where's Stella? She was going to come and get me."

"Called in. What's going on there with you and her?" Maybe he could get some answers.

"Stella has become like a sister to me. It started with when I interviewed her after Frankie. She came and stayed with me that night. Said a hotel was not what she needed that night." There was no innuendo; there was no suggestion in his voice.

"She stayed with you and you two are just friends?" Danny was fishing for information and just hoped that he had something to catch.

"Come on, I slept on the couch. With that, Aiden and now this, we've leaned on each other."

"There's nothing more there?" He wanted to double check.

"What with Stell and me? No. Now get me outta here."

**

**

"Guys calm down; buses will be here in a minute. Then we'll be on our way." Crazy morning, field trip mornings always were. Lunches had to be prepared by the cafeteria, calls had to be made about details of the trip, and on top of that…Danny was late.

A text told her he's meet her at the front door of the school when they got on the bus, but she could see the front door and he was nowhere near it.

He better be there she thought. She was down one adult already and another hadn't shown up yet.

She could see the buses pull up from her window. 'Here we go,' she thought.

Trips to places like the zoo or a museum are much different from a trip to a sporting event. At a sporting event each student has a seat to keep them contained. Empty seat meant missing student. A trip to the zoo meant they were not contained, harder to keep up with. That's what the extra adults were for. Her class was split into groups of about three or four and each adult or parent was responsible for those students.

"Guys, get with your groups, the parents are out front waiting with the buses." She looked out the window and saw the growing group of parents, but still no Danny. Letting out a sigh she called out again. "Let's go."

Keeping a group of twenty students quiet in the halls of a school while walking them out to a field trip, took all of Lindsay's attention and focus; keeping the groups together, keeping them under control. The kids saw Danny long before she did. He was standing near the front door. But Lindsay was more excited to see the figure of Don Flack standing next to him.

She shuffled the kids out the doors and onto the bus before addressing the two men on the sidewalk.

"Hey cowboy." She got a hug and a peck of a kiss from Danny, only to be followed by a chorus of 'oohs' from the bus. Flack got laughing, and Lindsay turned to him.

"Flack what are you doing here?"

"Doc said a nice walk in the park would do me good. So here I am."

He looked good, healthy. Words couldn't explain the joy she felt at the sight of him there. The idea that he felt good enough to be here was a lot. He got a hug too and this time Danny orchestrated the symphony of "oohs."

"Alright, alright. Let's go." With an eye roll aimed at Danny, they got onto the bus and she smacked him in the arm and whispered, "Wiseass."

**

They lucked out, the missing parent from the school, was standing at the gate when they arrived at the zoo. Lindsay would be responsible for three students all day. She set up lunch time and a meeting place; then released the adults and their groups to explore the zoo.

She let the kids check the map and pick their route. Danny and Flack added their two cents and they were off in the direction of the gorillas.

Lindsay hung back as the kids, Danny and Flack approached the gorilla that was near the glass. She especially watched the way that Danny interacted with the students. He had visited her school a few times over the year, but never got to see him interact with a few closely.

He was good with the kids. He was patient, he listened, he laughed with them. Lindsay just added it to the list of things that she loved about Danny Messer. Their small group of boys led them through the zoo while talking sports. Lindsay had to shake her head at the group of five little boys in front of her arguing about who was going to have the best year in baseball. Danny and Flack had turned into little boys with the way they were acting and talking. It was nice to see. Then the jokes started between all of them.

"Why did the computer go to the doctor?—It had a virus." Flack

"What happened to the dog who swallowed the firefly?—It barked with de-light." All the adults groaned with that one told by one of the kids.

"Why did the chicken cross the playground?—To get to the other slide."—Another groaner.

Who earns a living driving their customers away?—A taxi driver."

"Okay, that's enough. Same some for the bus later." Lindsay said and they walked on.

They saw the giraffes, bugs, reptiles, tigers, and lemurs. The kids would quote movies like Lion King and Madagascar when they saw animals that came from the movies. She was surprised when Flack joined them with quotes of his own from the movies, earning a questioning look from the other two adults.

"What, I have nephews and my kids at the 'Y.'"

**

When everyone boarded the bus at the end of the day, they were tired. The day had been perfect, the day had been beautiful…and now the day was over. Lindsay had to laugh at Danny and Flack. They fell asleep in their seats, legs stretched out on the trip back to the school. Many of the students did also.

The release of the air in the brakes and the squeak of the door woke everyone up. Parents waited on the sidewalk to pick up their kids. Soon all were hone and it was time for the three of them to go home.

"Did we wear you out today?" Don sat with Danny up in front and turned to answer her question.

"Linds, you did, but the exercise felt good. I'm tired. I'm sore and I'm ready to lie on my couch and doze off."

"You and me both, man." Danny added.

"Aww. That's cute; two of NYPD's finest are done in by fifth graders." Lindsay teased.

"I was blown up and just released from the hospital." Was Don's response.

Lindsay cocked her head in Danny's direction waiting for an excuse, but he did not have one. And she was never going to open her mouth and let them know how tired she was.

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A very special thanks to afrozenheart412, royan1985, laurzz, and Brinchen86 for all of your encouragement and special words. Keep 'em coming.

As always, thank you for reading, please review.


	23. Chapter 23

_Hey folks. Here we are in chapter 23 already. I have done yardwork for the last 7 hours and am about to fall over. I am about to take a nap, but I knew that I had to get this chapter published._

_I hope that you enjoy this. Please review and let me know..._

_Thank you to all of those wonderful people who continue to send me words of encouragement and support. Please continue it helps more than you may ever know._

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Lindsay got teary as she got ready for school. She got emotional while pouring her cup of coffee. She stared out the window while on the train and saw nothing. It was the last day of school; her kids would be leaving her building and moving to the next. She would never see most of the again. Their faces, their laughter, their bad jokes, their ideas. The kids she had this year were special and her afternoon group were dear to her heart.

When she unlocked the door to her classroom and walked through, she could hear the echo of the students against the empty walls. She'd done a lot in that room in ten months. Images of projects, activities, parties, celebrations were fresh in her head and by the end of the day the room would be bare so that the custodians could paint and clean.

The first bell rang. Lindsay pulled herself together and focused on the day.

**

"Danny…Danny"

"Mac...wha d'ya got?"

The older man laughed. "I was asking if you were okay. But obviously you're not. What's on your mind?"

"This morning, Lindsay was upset about it being her last day of school. I feel bad because she's upset."

Mac laughed at him again. "I told you…I told you it would happen."

"What?" Danny's voice was gravelly.

"Love…." Mac used the same tome he used in the hotel chapel a year or so ago.

"Yeah, love happened …my ma has already told me pretty much that if I screw this up, they're keeping Lindsay." He was fiddling with a pen between his fingers.

"You on paperwork duty?"

"Yeah, for once things are calm around here. I kinda let it slip and I was catchin' up." He pointed to the small pile of papers on his desk.

"Well kinda get it done and get out of here. Cheer up that girlfriend of yours. I agree with your mother. If you screw this up, we're keeping her too." Mac walked out of the office and left Danny to paperwork.

"I'm on it."

**

Shock…He was in shock. Things were a lot worse by the time he got home to her.

He unlocked the door to her apartment, ready to take her in his arms and hold her until she felt better. He bought flowers on the way home and was ready for a night of chick movies and ice cream on the couch.

A broken down Montana was not what he found at her place.

Not at all.

Not even close.

Lindsay was dancing around to the Beach Boys and straightening up. The music was turned up way too loud. She was in a pair of jean shorts and his prized Yankees jersey. And she was singing…way off key…loudly.

He found the stop button on the CD player and hit it, but she kept singing and dancing for a few more seconds, noticed him and then danced his way.

"Hello. You're home early." She kissed him soft and quickly.

"Where is the emotional wreck of a woman who was here this morning?"

"She said good-bye to her students, gave them the school's address and my work e-mail and said have a great summer. Then I remembered that I have the next two weeks off before I have to work again. With that time, I get to lounge around all day, drinking lemonade and sunning on the roof while I read trashy romance novels. I can stay up as late as I want. Every day is a weekend." She stood in front of him twisting and bopping to a beat only she could hear.

His flowers were tossed onto the table by the door. He caught her around the middle and pulled her in. "So Ms. Monroe, what are your plans tonight?"

"Tonight? I'm going out for drinks with Stella to celebrate the last day of school." She shimmied out of his arms, pressed play and went back to doing whatever she was doing. "Oh…" she continued, "Flack will be there, we just assumed you'd come along, us being attached at the hip and all."

**

"Messer, what got into Montana tonight?" Lindsay sat at a table with Stella laughing at something Stella said and watching the boys play pool.

"I have no idea, but she was in a great mood when I got home." Danny's eyes went wide and he bounced on the balls of his feet, while thinking about the events of the afternoon once he got home. If he thought Lindsay looked great in his Yankees shirt, he found out that it looked better coming off of her and landing on the floor as he followed her to her bed. "Now she's had a few drinks and her mood seemed to be getting better."

"That's good news for you, right?"

**

"How does it feel not to have to work for the next two weeks?" Stella asked

"Strange, because I am also still getting paid."

"Must be nice. What are you going to do first with your time off?"

"Try and convince Danny that us moving in together is a good idea." It came out so smoothly that Stella almost didn't believe she heard it.

"I don't think it will be hat hard kiddo." The thought that Danny wouldn't want to move in with her was more ridiculous than the opposite.

"It's a big step, a big suggestion, we've been through a lot yet we have not fought or even had a disagreement about anything."

"You haven't fought with that guy yet?" She threw a thumb over her shoulder in Danny's direction. The lab hot head, expert interrogator and the man who was easy to have heated argument with over how to get from point A to point B.

"Nope."

"Wow, um Lindsay usually when he gets done with an interrogation he had to find a way to get rid of the extra energy. I've known him to go to the gym, hit the batting cages, even hit a bucket of balls at the driving range, but with you around he might find other ways to burn it off…Not _one_ heated discussion?" Lindsay shook her head at Stella. "I hope I'm not in town when it finally happens. Anyway he won't hesitate to move in with you."

"What makes you think so?" But the answer never came because the pool game ended.

"Hello ladies." Don could charm the breath out of a drowning man.

"Don Flack, you feeling good tonight?" Lindsay asked.

"Yes, I have been cleared to drink, moderately, and I don't remember 'the good stuff' tasting this good." He held up his glass.

"Lindsay Monroe, you wanna shoot a game with me?" Danny stood with his cue in his hand.

She stood, slinked his way, and stepped into his personal space. "You gonna go easy on me detective? I haven't played in a while." She moved around him to start the game.

Flack sat down in the chair that Lindsay just vacated and leaned over to Stella, "This should be good. You'll enjoy this. Watch."

Danny was still standing near Stella and Flack when he heard. "Rack your balls?" Danny's head whipped around and caught her eye first and then went back to Don's to see if he heard what she said.

Don was already leaning in to Stella again and whispering in her ear. "This is going to be better than good."

**

Every part of Danny was already screaming and the game hadn't started yet. She seemed to have a power over him.

"You're break." She breathed, running her hand across his shoulders.

**

Don Flack being of sound mind and healing body was having a hard time watching the third game between his two friends; he was either laughing, talking to Stella about what they were witnessing or debating getting the hose out for those two.

The first game went along very smoothly and Danny won. He hadn't gained any skills over the past months, but Lindsay was taking harder shots and missed a few.

The second game was a little more interesting. Danny didn't want to play again because he had won. Lindsay had to push to get the rematch, and Danny relented after something was whispered in his ear and his face flushed red. Lindsay won the game easily and quickly, showing Danny that she still had the skills.

And that brought us to the third game. To say that Danny played dirty was an understatement. To say that Lindsay was an angel was anything but the truth.

The game on the table took a back seat to the show that they were, once again, putting on.

As Danny tried to take his first shot, Lindsay started a joke that was meant for Flack and Stella's amusement. "Hey guys, How do you make a pool table laugh?" Both friends shook their heads as she made her way over to where Danny was, just to make sure he heard the punch line. "Put your hands in the pockets and tickle its balls." Danny's shaved his shot across the cue ball and it wobbled about three inches. He stood and turned on her.

"That was cold."

"That was just the beginning Danny." She laughed and passed him.

He wasn't going to be out done. He followed her close and waited for her to lean into her shot. Then he was right there next to her. "I don't know Montana, I don't think you go the skills to take this. I think you've lined it up wrong. Are you sure that you can make this?" He was firing off comments right after another right into her ear.

Her cue slide through her fingers and hit the mark perfectly. Her head turned slightly and she gave him a peck on the cheek. "It's gonna take more than that, Cowboy." Before he could think of something she'd taken another shot.

**

"Um…Mess, this is starting to look like the game from the first night I met Lindsay. You learn anything new since then?"

Flack was loving it and so was Stella. "Was it like this the first night?"

"Yes, but I have a feeling the stakes are about to go up."

**

Danny was pondering Flack's last comment aimed at him. He had learned a lot about Lindsay. It was time to use that knowledge in his favor.

She was moving around the table looking at the table like she was hunting prey. Little did she know, Danny was hunting for prey of his own.

Fingertips grazed the skin under the bottom of her shirt on the small of her back when she leaned over on the table. His touch was enough to throw her off. Her shot went wide and she missed. He was close when she stood back up.

"Messer, that was cold."

"Blame Flack. He gave me the idea." She rolled her eyes at the suggestion as he moved past her, touching her again on the small of her back as he did.

Lindsay was starting to feel ornery. "Hey Danny, why are pool tables green?" He tried to ignore her, he tried and tried, but the joke was just hanging there. He hoped that he could get his turn in before the rest of it. While he was down on the table she moved right next to him and all she did was lay an arm on his back. As soon as the cue started to move she spoke. "You'd be green too, if someone racked your balls over and over." Shot missed.

Danny noticed that she was roaming around the table looking for a shot. He had screwed the table up with his last miss and there was nothing open.

"Can I help?" He watched her move, look at the table, and then move again.

"No, thank you. You've helped enough already." It was fully of sarcasm and bite. There was nothing on the table for her to shoot at.

"O-okay." He tried to move out of her way and they danced around for a moment. "Alright…after you."

She shot blind, there was nothing to hit, there was no way that she was going to sink anything.

Lindsay moved back to her drink waiting on the table with Stella. Quickly finding an easy shot he leaned into it. Then she came back. Two hands grabbed the back of his thighs moved up and landed on his backside, gave a healthy squeeze and then continued up to his back and shoulders. He didn't move, eyes fluttered shut and he froze.

**

"Was their last game like this?" Stella could hardly believe what she was seeing between these two.

"Not so much, no." He was working on a cup of coffee. "It was a little more tame. They'd just met the day before."

"And they played a full three games?"

"She was awesome through all three. Wiped the floor with him." Flack was about to go into a monologue about the last time when Stella pointed back at the table.

Danny was standing next to her as she took aim at the 8-ball. He was whispering something to her and she was having a hard time keeping her eyes open. Next thing Flack knew, the cue was laid on the table, Lindsay had Danny by the hand and was leading him out of the bar, leaving the game unfinished.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Flack called after them as they headed out.

**

Danny stood at the kitchen sink, shorts riding low on his hips, wondering how he got so lucky. The faucet dripped and with each he replayed scenes in his head from the hours before.

_Drip_

The hasty exit they made from the bar, waving good-bye to friends.

_Drip_

The ride on his bike, where he had to try and concentrate while her hands did unspeakable things to him. Thank God there wasn't a cop around.

_Drip_

He'd had her against the wall of the elevator, legs around him, his face buried in her neck.

_Drip_

Fumbling with his keys while she fumbled with other things and laughed at his frustration.

_Drip_

The trail of clothes they left on the way to his bed.

_Drip_

The sheer pleasure of skin touching skin as moonlight poured through the window, providing the only illumination on their love.

_Drip_

The tears that ran down her cheeks when his love and emotion flooded through her and flew her to the heavens.

_Drip_

The words of love he whispered in her hair as they drifted off together under the watchful twinkle of the stars.


	24. Chapter 24

_Okay, so from reviews, or the lack there of...I would assume that the last chapter was not as strong as others. There is a big decision made in this chapter between Danny and Lindsay and it follows through to the next. Let me know what you think and what I need to do more of if there is something missing. I want to keep this going, but I also want it to be something that you want to read._

_Thank you for the kindness that you have shown me thus far._

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"Danny, do you know where my book is?" She checked her couch, her room, under the newspaper. She'd checked everywhere once already, but she checked again.

"No, but the last time I remember you reading it, was Sunday morning." He called from the bathroom where he was getting ready for work.

'Sunday, that means it's at his place.' She thought. "Arrrgggg."

"Very attractive." He opened the door and headed to her room.

"No I just realized that it's probably at your place." She hollered after him. Then she mumbled a lot more quietly. "If we only have one place this wouldn't happen."

"I agree." He was right behind her, heard her comment and walked right by, getting his shoes from by the door.

"You agree?"

"Yes, I agree that we should have one place, live together: yours, mine, or something new." He was sitting on the couch and tying his shoes, still working full steam ahead to get to work on time. "Think about it. We'll grab a bite to eat and talk after work." He kissed her forehead and left. She stood dumb founded and the slam of the door brought her around.

"What the hell just happened?" The empty apartment did not reply.

**

"Someone's moving and I will need your help." Flack was confused. He was at PT when the text came through and he was in no shape YET to help anyone move.

**

"Someone's moving and I will need your help." Hawkes looked at his phone and wondering why someone was moving, and how, in the building, switching offices.

**

"Hey boss, I need your help. Linds and I are moving in together and when it all goes down we are going to need help movin' stuff." Mac did not have the chance to answer because Danny was gone and out of the office before he could form a thought.

**

"Adam, wha d'ya got?" Adam looked up at Danny in confusion. "Sorry…habit. Linds and I are moving in together and need your man power soon."

"You got it, man."

**

Lindsay's phone rang while she was out that day. "Monroe."

"Lindsay I hear from multiple sources that you talked to Danny about moving in together."

"Danny's already talked to you about helping us move?"

One of Stella's laughs caught her ear. "Kiddo, Danny's talked to everyone about helping you guys move. He hasn't gotten to me yet, but Mac mentioned it to me, Hawkes, Adam. I am sure that Don will call in a while wondering about the details."

"We just mentioned it this morning in passing. We are going to move somewhere together. Where? I'm working on that right now." Lindsay was on her way over to Danny's.

"Okay, I just wanted to say congratulations."

"Thanks."

**

Danny found Stella in the halls. "Good Morning, dear."

She laughed at the old joke that they threw around. "Do I have a tail back there?"

He smiled. "Good morning, Stella."

"Better. What can I do for you?"

"Linds and I are going to move in together and we are going to need some help at some point."

"Let me know when." The smile on his face was brilliant when she looked at him. "I hate to do this, but Adam is overloaded with evidence from a scene that Hawkes and I were at earlier."

"Say no more. I am on it."

**

Danny could see Lindsay sitting at a table in the park. Her hair was pulled back and she was tapping a pen against a yellow pad of paper, deep in thought. Other yellow sheets of paper were spread across the table top, each with a rock on top of it to keep them from blowing away. She looked quite pleased with herself.

"School work?" He asked when he reached the table.

"Nope, you told me to think about something this morning and this is how I think."

The papers all head headings boldly written across the top: "My Place," "Danny's Place," "New Place," "Stuff to Keep," "Stuff to Get Rid Of." Each list had a column of pros and cons.

"Wow, you take thinkin' seriously." He straddled the bench next to her and leaned his elbow on the table.

"You think this is bad, you should have seen what I did when I decided to move here and then when I had the option to switch jobs. I could have covered the whole park and then some."

"So what did all this tell you?"

"It tells me that I want to move in with you or find a new place." He questioned her with his eyes. "My place is too small for our combined stuff." Slowly her body shifted into his chest while she was talking. Lindsay craved the normal couple stuff. They had both been through so much and any moment that they could just be together to be in love, she jumped at the chance.

"Boom, you really have been thinking about this. I don't think that my place is big enough either. Let's start looking for something a little bigger. I am going to start moving stuff to you place. My lease is up and I could stand not paying rent on two places."

Lindsay's face fell. "I didn't think about the leases. Mine's not up until September."

"Okay." If he thought any harder, the gears in his head were going to burn out. "I move in with you for the next few months and we take our time looking for a place."

**

"Oh, we gotta stop. I am so tired." That night, more paper littered the floor of his apartment as they tried to figure out what to keep and what to get rid of. "I say throw it all in a storage unit and sort it out after we find a new place. Who knows, maybe we'll win the lottery and get a place that will hold it all." She was exhausted, threw the pen down and fell backwards on the floor.

He crawled up her body from him place on the floor and hovered over her. "So what'd we get done?" Kiss. "We agreed to move in t'gether." Kiss. "We agreed that we're gonna to find a new place." Kiss. "And that everythin's goin' into storage until we get it all sorted out." There was no kiss after that last statement and she opened her eyes when her lips came up empty.

He was still hovering over her when she spoke. "We also have an army of friends set up, with Flack as the supervisor of course, to help us move as long as we provide the pizza and drinks. I will start boxing stuff up over the next couple of days. I can start at your place too."

"Yeah, that's good, go ahead. The faster I'm out, the faster I'm with you." Doing a small push up, he started to move away, but stopped. "Oh yeah, did you find your book?" The kisses started again.

"What?"

"Your book, the one that started all of this, did you find it?"

"Yeah, it was next to the bed."

Something dawned on Danny. Lindsay could see it in his eyes. If there was a light bulb it would have gone on.

"Danny what is going on in that head of yours?" Lindsay had to be cautious. He was thinking something.

"We gotta try out each bed some more before deciding which one to use as ours. That might take hours and hours of exploration."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Only you would think of that." He jumped off the floor and pulled her up with him.

"You gotta make sure that it sleeps right…has the right support…" He was leading her down the hall. "Linds, you have to make sure that it snuggles right." He pressed his forehead to hers.

**

**

There were not enough hours in the day to get everything done. Danny was trying to pack up his apartment with Lindsay's help, he had his shifts to cover at work, he had to work on finding a new place, he wanted to visit Lindsay's students before the two week period was over, he wanted to be a good son and visit his parents on Sunday and see Louie in the hospital. There were just not enough hours in the day.

"Danny."

"Yeah boss."

"Where are we on the case?"

"Um…" Danny couldn't think of any case that was ongoing right now. He looked down at his desk for anything that would give him a clue, but found nothing but paper work and doodling. He pushed papers around the top looking for anything. "um…"

"Danny stop looking, you're not on a case right now." The younger man slumped back in his chair and let out the air her was holding. "What are you still doing here? Your shift ended hours ago."

"I was helping Stella, I had a grand jury hearing this morning, and now I am finishing up some other stuff."

Mac looked at the younger man. He looked ruffled, unshaven and the dark circles under his eyes were indicators of how little sleep he's gotten. "You have any vacation days saved?"

"Mac, come on, you know I haven't officially taken a day in a long time that you didn't tell me to." Danny tossed the pen he'd been playing with onto his desk.

"What if I asked you to take some time?" Mac sat on the couch in the small office and waited for the answer.

"What are we talkin' 'bout here, a day, maybe two?"

"I'm talking a week. Monday thru Friday and the weekends. You have been put through a lot: Louie, Aiden, Flack, and Stella. It's been a shock to the system and now you've added moving on top of that."

"When are you wantin' me to take this time?" Danny wouldn't have had the idea to time on his own. He would have just kept working until his plate cleared.

"I would have you take it next week. I don't need the answer right now, but before the end of Wednesday so I can rearrange shifts."

**

"Where are you?" It was the new daily text between them, well that or "Where are we sleeping tonight?" He would send one of those two messages before heading home. He never knew which apartment Lindsay had ended up at. After working a half day, she would go to one of their two apartments and pack things up.

"Messer." He answered the annoying gadget on his hip.

"Hey Messer." He loved how she put extra emphasis on his name.

"I am on my way home to my place." She told him. Home, soft bed, Lindsay. No evidence, no crime talk. He was ready to be home. It was becoming the cardboard kingdom, but it was still home as long as she was there.

"I went by and read some of my book to Louie." She continued. She liked doing that and he appreciated the time that she sent with Louie. Research had shown that talking to someone in a coma helped. She had already clocked so many hours next to him. There were times that she ran into his mom and dad and they would sit and talk for a while or grab a bite to eat in the cafeteria. She also knew Flack's physical therapy schedule and would run into him many times out there.

"I spent the afternoon over at your place packing up." Guess that means he didn't need to rush over and get work done any time soon. She had already packed half of his place and some boxes had to be reopened to find items that he wanted to use on a day-to-day basis. They laughed when one of his shoes was packed, but not the other one. He spent about a hour one morning looking for his shoes before opening some of the boxes.

"And I have sandwiches from the deli for dinner." Oh he loved this woman right now.

"Your super called and said that he has a place opening in your building with more space. I told him we'd look at it after or before your shift sometime this week." He tried to remember what shifts he was working the rest of the week.

"And I bumped into your mother at the hospital. She wants to know if we can meet on Sunday for lunch somewhere near the hospital. It's the only day that they can spend long periods of time with Louie and if she cooks, then the time is cut in half."

Danny found his voice after she was done with updating him with everything. "Have I told you how much I am in love with you? How could one woman get all these things done in one day?" In his mind his decision was made. "Mac asked me to take some time off next week. Between the double shifts, Louie, Aiden, Stella getting attacked and Flack getting blown up, I have not taken much time to pull things back together and he was concerned. I'm gonna take him up on his offer. Tomorrow we are going to go and look at that other place and see if it suits us. If it does that we can start getting all the stuff together and move."

"I have to teach all week."

"Only in the mornings and then we can work together. But I will pack up my place while you are at school. Then next Saturday we will call in the troops to move the big stuff."

"It sounds like a great plan. How 'bout you get a movie for us on the way home?"

"See you in twenty."

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_There is it. Please review. I want to hear about how this is going._


	25. Chapter 25

Okay, here is the answer to the million dollar question that I have gotten over and over...and I find it funny becuase we are not even to the third season and you are asking questions about the fourth season...but yes, you will see Rikki. In what fashion will you see her? Well I just hope that there is a following by the time we get to that point for you to find out. Rueben makes an appearance here in a few chapters for the first time.

As always, reviews are appreciated and craved. Enjoy.

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The time between when Danny told Mac that he would take the week off, to when he and Lindsay sat in the stands at Yankee Stadium nine days later on Friday, went by like a bad music montage from an 80s movie.

_Seeing the apartment in Danny's building and accepting it._

_Bringing boxes from the old places they had to the new one all week long. Seeing them disappear from one place and start stacking up at the other._

_Manhandling small pieces of furniture up the stairs from his place to the new one because the elevator was out of order for the day._

_Danny kissing Lindsay good bye at the front door in the mornings when she left for school and then starting to move stuff again while she was gone._

_Visiting Louie at the hospital and talking with his mother._

_Danny and Lindsay sitting in the new apartment leaning against boxes on the floor and eating pizza._

_Danny visiting her kids on the last day of summer school._

_Danny emptying boxes while talking to friends who stopped by. _

It was a good week.

**

"What made you get tickets to tonight's game?" Lindsay took a huge bite out of the hot dog that she was holding.

"Our new apartment is coming together. I am going back to work on Monday. Mommy and Pop are going to move Louie closer to where they are so that they can visit him more often and take some of the burden off of us." She started to protest but he stopped her. "We are going to be stuck in one of three apartments with most of our friends all day tomorrow and probably into the night. I wanted to get out into the open air with the woman that I love." He kissed her cheek once…then again…then one more time before turning back to the game.

**

What did we do before cell phones? How did we ever get through life without texting, push-to-talk and camera phones? Saturday, moving day would not have worked at all if cell phones were not in existence. Photos were sent back and forth all day about what went into the dumpster and what went into the new place. Flack was the supervisor in Danny's old apartment, Stella was in charge at Lindsay's old place and Lindsay took charge of the new apartment.

First thing they did Saturday morning was to empty Lindsay's apartment of everything but the bed, living room couch, TV, and chairs at the counter. Her parents would be staying there at the beginning of August for graduation.

"Lunch break." Danny called following the last box from Lindsay's into the apartment. They munched and crunched on pizza and were formulating a plan for emptying Danny's place downstairs.

"It's gonna take almost all of us to get that pool table up that elevator." Danny looked at Hawkes, Adam and Mac as he talked.

Lindsay wanted to have some fun. "Danny I thought we agreed not to move the table. It came with that apartment, it should stay there."

Any other conversations that were going on became silent. Flack's eyes were as big as a dinner plates, he knew how much Danny loved that table. Lindsay hadn't looked up from her pizza and kept eating. Flack looked then to Danny for any kind of clue.

Danny was busy flipping through all of the conversations they had and he didn't remember anything about this decision. Mac could see the confusion on the younger man's face.

All day long, anyone who brought anything into the apartment was told to keep the middle of the living room open. It was assumed by all that it was because the space was for the pool table.

Danny could feel all eyes on him as he tried to come up with a way to talk about this.

"Monroe, I don't remember us talking about that. I remember talking about the couches, dishes, and how we were going to set things up, but I don't remember anything about leaving the pool table behind."

"Huh." She smiled. "Must have been a dream I had or just something to keep you on your toes." Her eyes went to his.

"Keep me on my toes…can I talk to you for a minute please?" Napkin was thrown into the empty pizza box in front of him on the counter and he headed to their bedroom. Lindsay looked at their friends who now looked more relaxed, but she put her own napkin down and followed. The door closed behind her and she was instantly facing the wall pinned against it.

"You had me going out there." The length of his body pressed her to the wall and it was doing amazing things. "You want to tease me, keep me on my toes, then bring it on, but I'm going to get you for that Monroe, big time." Before she could come up with something to say, he had her turned and on the receiving end of a bruising kiss and grabby hands.

And then he was gone.

She had to take a few minutes to calm the fire that was surging through her and she needed to smooth down her clothes.

**

The water was hot and bubbly in the tub, and it felt so good on her muscles. The day had taken a lot out of her.

Danny walked Stella and Flack out of the apartment just before the clock chimed 11, calling that he would be back in a bit. She took the opportunity to fill the tub and sink into it. She thought about all the things they got done and that made her more tired. The majority of the boxes were empty. Stella and Lindsay emptied them as soon as they walked through the door practically. The kitchen was completely set up. Most of the clothes were put where they needed to be put. The furniture was laid out the way they wanted it. It felt like home.

"That's what I'm talking about." Danny stood at the bathroom door staring at his girlfriend neck deep in bubbles. Instinctively she went to cover herself but then relaxed.

"I didn't hear you come in."

He thumbed over his shoulder. "Door doesn't squeak. Floor doesn't creek. I'm gonna have an easy time getting in late at night without you hearing me." She hadn't shooed him away yet, so he took a step into the bathroom.

"Stella and Flack get away?" Her eyes closed as he sat down on the toilet.

"Yes, and I locked up the place downstairs and put the key under the super's door. We not only have two places again." She still hadn't protested so his fingers started drawing designs in the bubbles.

"My place will be gone as soon as the end of September, only two more months." Her eyes were still closed but she could feel the water moving from his fingers. "If you are wanting to get in all you have to do is ask."

"Boom." He was half stripped with his shirt over his head, when her eyes opened.

"I don't remember you asking if you could get in with me."

Muffled from under the t-shirt she heard "Ms. Lindsay Monroe, can I get into the tub with you?"

She was going to have to control her laughter before she could answer him. "I don't know, why would I want to share all this nice hot water and bubbles with the likes of you?" Laughter came again when his hands slumped down and his shirt still hung over his head.

"You lettin' me in or not?" It was still muffled.

"Yeah, come 'ere."

She scooted up enough to let him in behind her.

"Is it hot enough?" He hissed and groaned every inch of the way while he slid in behind her from both the heat and the sore muscles. When he touched her shoulders she leaned back against him, head coming to rest on his collarbone.

"You have one more day off. What are you going to do with it?" Danny loved it when she was completely relaxed, her words slurred and sounded so sexy.

"I thought I might have an old fashioned movie day in my new place with you. I already called my parents and told them that we would not be coming out for dinner. I am going to hang out here with you and do NOTHING."

She slid against him. "Sounds wonderful."

**

**

"Honey I'm home." Danny was checking the mail as he walked in at the end of July. "You got a letter from Montana." He chuckled. "You got a letter from yourself. Hello?" A yellow sticky note on the TV caught his attention. 'Up on the roof.' The mail was forgotten because 'Up on the roof' meant short shorts, tank top and lots of tanned skin.

**

Behind a well warn copy of "Ten Little Indians" Lindsay soaked up the sun. It was a new habit. School work towards graduation was taken care of in the morning and reading in the sunshine or errands in the afternoon. Danny appreciated the tan lines.

"Hello, Ms. Monroe."

"Hey, how was today?" An old boarding pass marked her place in the book and it was set down.

"It's over, I'm home." He sat on the end of the lounge chair that they found for her to use. "You good?"

"Flack was here for a while. I think that he is starting to go nuts not being at work."

Danny laughed at her. "He stopped by the lab. I almost didn't recognize him in shorts standing there. On the court sure, but in the lab, it just looked wrong."

"He's got what, about a month before he's on desk duty and then two weeks after that he's back full duty." Lindsay tried to remember what she was told earlier in the day.

"Sounds 'bout right." He sat up straighter. "You get it done today?"

"Yes." She rolled her eyes at him.

"You have them check everything?"

"Yes." Her answer was a little more forceful.

"So, its official?"

"Yes, its official. I will be getting my degree in education in a couple of weeks."

He pushed his glasses up his nose. "Really?"

"Yeah." She was really proud of herself.

**

More comfortably dressed for the heat of summer, Danny returned to the living room to find Lindsay reading her card.

"Who's it from?" He asked.

"My parents, it's my first "congratulations on your graduation" card." He could see how much graduating was going to mean to her.

"Hey, how about some ice cream. I'm gonna run down and get some of that Ben and Jerry's that you like so much." He was out the door before she had a chance to answer.

**

"Bonasera."

"Stell, I need your help." Danny filled her in and found out she was a lot more help that he could even fathom.

Armed with bags of supplies he headed back up to the apartment. Lindsay was deep in her book when he returned back into their apartment.

"Hey, I got ice cream, cookie dough, beer, a couple of movies and if there's something else you want I can go get it."

**

Danny could hardly contain himself. He sat in the sea of people waiting to hear the names of their loved ones as they graduated.

Lindsay crossed the stage tall and proud. Danny and her parents were somewhere in the crowd and she wanted to shine. As soon as her hand touched her diploma and turned to go down the steps and saw and heard nine people making a lot of noise. She found where Danny was sitting and around him she saw his Mom and Dad, Stella, Sid, Flack, Adam, Hakes, her parents and Mac. The site of them brought tears to her eyes and she waved her diploma their way before returning to hear seat.

A lot had changed in the past year for her. She walked away from a job that she loved. She moved away from her past, her home town and her family. She moved away from her support system to a new job, life, city and way of thinking. She met Danny and fell in love and with him she got a very unconventional extended family. And she loved every single one of the more today that any other day because they had come to be there with her and celebrate. Tears again filled her eyes again, sitting somewhere behind her was her new family.


	26. Chapter 26

_Here we are at chapter 26 and the beginning of season 3. Wow, without you readers, I would not be here. Again special thanks to those who have reviewed and been here for the long haul. There is a lot more to come and I am excited about it. Thank you thank you for the almost 21000 hits and 226 reviews. This starts the beginning of season 3 and other things. Please, please let me know what you think. _

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"How did it turn out that my first days back on desk duty are over Labor Day Weekend?"

"You're just lucky like that?" Danny stated, sitting down across from Flack in the bullpen. "How does it feel to be back?"

'Strange. I got used to shorts and t-shirts. I find the suit a little restrictive now. Other than that its good. I missed it." He looked around. There was a guy yelling into another detective's face across the room, there was a drunk vomitting onto the shoes of another guy he knew, and there were coffee and donuts ocer in a corner. "Yeah, I sure did miss all this."

"Welcome back buddy. We missed you around here." Danny got up and headed out for the night, as another tipsy frat boy was brought in, probably something alcohol related. Ha, it was going to be a long weekend.

**

Flack raised his glass to Lindsay on Friday night. "Here to the end of your first week of school."

Lindsay bowed her head at him and made a counter toast. "Here's to the end of your first week back on the job."

Danny was not to be undone and raised his glass towards Lindsay, "Here's to paying rent on only one place." Lindsay raised her brow in confusion. "I finished emptying out your old place and turned in the keys this morning."

All eyes went to Stella for her toast.

"Here's to me for not having to deal with any of those things." Laughter broke out around the small table.

"How're your kids this year Linds?" Flack's question caught her by surprise and she was in the middle of eating an onion ring.

"It's too early in the year to give you a good answer. I already can tell that I have a couple that might be a little hard to control, it does take a few weeks to get things going. But it seems it'll be a really year again."

"When are you going to the Yankees game?" This time both Danny and Flack gave her their attention after the question.

"I checked both of your schedules and you're both working that day. Stella has the day off and said that she would go with me." Stella sat in her chair and bopped to music that no one could hear while the two guys looked hurt. "Stell, you wouldn't mind coming with me, going out on the field, getting up close and personal with the players? You're still up for that right?" The guys were practically drooling.

"Linds, I already told you that I would call in sick that day if I had to." The two women high fived and looked at the two men sitting with me. "Oh, I think we broke them." Stella continued. Danny and Flack had the biggest pout on their faces. Lindsay got up, stood behind Danny and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Don't worry Messer, we'll be nice." He perked up a bit. "We'll bring you back an autograph." She kissed his cheek and had to move fast to get out of reach of his hands. Blowing a kiss at him she went back to her seat. "Love you."

"Yeah, whatever."

Stella took over the conversation while Danny and Lindsay passed insults. "Don, you have one more week behind a desk. You looking forward to being back on the scene?"

"Yeah, there's a stale smell in that place. I'm ready for fresh air, being able to move around, follow leads rather than handing them off to other detectives. Plus I get to be back with you guys more often." He gave a look to Danny and Stella, but Stella's lingered a breath to long, not to go unnoticed by Danny.

"Okay guys tell me again there's nothing going on between you." Danny's request was plain and simple.

Both persons being questioned looked at Danny in disbelief. Don put a hand up to stop Stella from talking and begin. "Danny, I guess it's time that you know that Stella and I are having a shallow sex only relationship. We keep this friendship front up for the rest of you." Lindsay's shocked gaze went to Stella to see if it was the truth only to get an eye roll.

"Don Flack has become the brother that I never had." Stella filled in and took his hands in hers.

"Yeah and she's the sister I wish were part of the family."

"Flack, you have a sister and a brother." Danny filled in.

"Yeah, but a family can never be too big." Flack added.

"I totally agree." And Lindsay raised her glass.

**

Lindsay had been too quiet on the way home that night. "Alright Monroe, what's going on? What are you thinking?"

"It's just creepy, how well you know me sometimes." She gave him a sideways glance as they walked home from the train. "Tell me about Don's family."

"What do you want to know?"

She pushed her hands deeper into her pockets and found the right words. "I have known him for as long as I have known you. We hang out a lot with him, and tonight is the first that I hear of a brother and a sister? I find that odd."

"He's not really close to his family. His mom died a few years back. He doesn't talk to his brother much, and he hears from his sister when she's in trouble and needs a 'get out of jail free card'."

"And his dad?"

Before he started, Danny drew a deep breath into his lungs and let it out. "He and his dad don't see eye to eye about a lot of things. Flack Sr. does not like hot Flack defends the CSI's evidence over a fellow detective's word. Senior never agreed over Flack bailing his sister out over and over. He gave up and washed his hands of her years ago."

Absently mindedly she blurted: "They look so much alike…"

"Huh…who?" Danny was obviously confused. "Did I miss somethin'?"

"Don and his dad, they look so much alike."

Danny stopped her in mid step. "Have you met him?"

"Yeah, I did once, the day of the explosion. It was very quick. Um…he came to see Flack in the hospital, asked if I was the girlfriend. Asked if I was a cop. Asked how Flack as doing and then left."

"Does he know that his dad came to visit?"

"No, by the time you guys came in that night I'd forgotten and the man told me not to mention that he was there. I remembered it when we were talking about family tonight." She laughed a little. "Didn't seem too excited when I mentioned your name."

"No, he doesn't think highly of my family, Louie being a Tanglewood Boy and all. Rest of the family's guilty by association. It really got to him when Flack and I started hanging out, working together, playin' ball."

"Is there any sport that you don't do? Basketball, pool, baseball…Danny that's a lot of balls."

The seriousness was broken. "Let me let you in on somethin'. It takes a lot of balls to play the way I do."

"Yeah, you gotta be brave, you lose so much." She took off down the sidewalk at a jog, hoping to stay out of range of anything he had to throw at her.

"Keep running Monroe, I know where you live."

**

In the 5th floor apartment, that had become a unique mixture of Danny Messer and Lindsay Monroe there was a desk and chair that they shared as a work space. It was one of the spaces in the apartment that was a perfect mixture of them seamlessly. Her schoolwork mingled with notes and files about cases that he brought home to work on. One of their computers always graced the top of the desk. When both of them were home her school bag hung off of one side of the chair and his gun and badge hung from the other, again it was the perfect mix.

Danny would come home some nights and find Lindsay asleep on top of her lesson plans at that desk. Lindsay would find Danny sitting there checking out baseball stats from the internet.

But hanging on the wall just above the desk was framed photo. It was brand new to the space, but it was one of Lindsay's favorite things in the world. More often than not, Lindsay would catch herself staring at the faces smiling back at her than working. She'd caught Danny staring also.

Mac had given her a bunch of photos after graduation that he'd taken. The picture was taken the night of her graduation when they had all gone out for dinner. But the photo that she cherished so much, Mac couldn't take credit for, because he was in it. The photo that had become the centerpiece in their apartment was of their collective family: Hawkes, Adam, Flack, Stella, Danny's parents, Mac, Stella, Sid, her parents and of course Danny and Lindsay. Maybe Stella had a point; your family could never be too big.

Lindsay had been thinking about paying a visit to one of her new family members. She needed some help with something.

**

The very distinct sound of someone knocking on the glass door to his office, caught his attention. Mac's eyes lost focus on the paper in front of him and he looked towards the door. He noted to himself that Lindsay looked like she belonged working in the lab; she was smartly dressed and had a file folder in one hand tapping it against the palm of the other hand.

"Hey Mac. You have a minute?" She was unsure of herself and seemed nervous.

"Lindsay, this is a pleasant surprise." He looked at his watch. "Shouldn't you be teaching? Wait, are you alright? Danny's out in the field with Hawkes and Detective Angell, but I can get him here." The concern was clear on his face.

"No, I'm fine, I took a half day. I came to see you about something and Danny does not need to know about it yet." She handed Mac the file she carried in and stepped back. "I think it's all pretty self explanatory. Anything you can do would be great. Call me if you have any questions and thank you in advance even if there's nothing you can do."

Mac took a moment to look through the file. When he looked back up, Lindsay was gone.

**

Danny and Flack were shooting a game of pool in the living room when Lindsay got home. They had finished their work and it was time for play.

"Hey, Linds." Flack called at her entry.

"Hello, boys." She set the bag of groceries down on the counter and greeted Danny and then patted Danny on the shoulder. "Did you two play nice today?"

"Yeah, I worked with the new ME, learned all about bungee sex, found out that even if you stab someone with a key chain of the Statue of Liberty the light in the torch still comes on, and I learned that if you know the right people, you can make the lights in a building say "Merry Me." Flack recited these items as if they were lessons that he learned at school that day. Lindsay worked in the kitchen putting stuff away and listening.

"How about you Danny, what did you do today?"

"I made a new friend." He looked towards Flack. "Jessica Angell got promoted and Hawkes and I worked a case with her the last couple of days."

"Which case?"

"Um…Penthouse, dead woman, pillow fight, paid chaparones, back alley fights." Flack nodded remembering the details of the case he'd heard about over the radio.

"So, there's a new ME…" Lindsay started.

"Peyton Driscoll." Flack informed her.

"…and a new detective..."

"Jessica Angell." Danny finished her sentence for her.

"Well alright, you two play nice."

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_Ahhh, and season 3 begins. If you like how this started please let me know. If you follow the show, and I hope that you do, then you know what's to come. The question is, how do I tie it all into the storyline of Danny and Linday that I have created. Please come back and read to find out. If you have not signed up for the story alert, please do. It will let you know when a new chapter is published, (that's just about everyday or every other day.)_

_As always, please please please review. _


	27. Chapter 27

_This covers 'Not what it looks like' pretty close to how it happened. Some of the lines and looks between them had to be included. But then it splits again. Cases are mentioned and the story moves on._

_Thank you again for the wonderful words. I have gotten two questions about Peyton and Mac. They will show up just like they did in the show. Danny will find out in Heart of Glass. Remember that file that Lindsay gave to Mac. It's about to cause some tension between Danny and Lindsay. Please keep reading and reviewing. You know how the third season goes, but how does this story tie in the story lines._

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"Hey Montana." His voice came through the phone too sugary and too sweet."

"Danny, what do you want?" There would be no other reason for the tone.

"Your body." He let the words slip between his lips like pulled taffy, slow and long. His voice was low and seductive.

"What?" He was at work and she must have heard him wrong.

"I need your body." Nope hadn't heard him wrong. With the next sentence he was all business. "I need your body at the scene where I'm at. It's Saturday, you're the closest person with a body small enough."

"Small enough for what?" This was getting very suspicious.

"Come down and see."

"I'm on the street already, which way do I go?" As soon as he said that he needed her at a scene, she grabbed her stuff and headed out waiting for further directions.

**

Danny met her at the yellow tape and escorted her under. He filled her in on the robbery and the tie to 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' with the Hollies that pulled off the heist. Inside the store she saw Stella directing other in the collection of diamond jewelry and lots of it.

"Don't even think about it Montana." He playfully warned her.

"That necklace is worth more than I make in a year. That's crazy." She eyeballed the piece one more time before following him.

"I don't see what the big deal is. A diamond is just an allotrope of the element carbon." The scientist in him started coming out.

"Spoken like a true romantic." Lindsay shook her head and rolled her eyes at him.

"Come on, you're needed back here." She followed him to a small back room.

"Hey Monroe, you switch jobs and not tell me?" Flack stood in front of a vent that had been bent to allow some one through.

"No, I just fit the criteria." Flack looked at her strange and cocked his head slightly. "I'm small." She pointed at the vent that she assumed she would be going through.

"The managers assumed it was an old ventilation shaft. Look like our Hollies used it to escape." Flack filled her in. "Looks like you're going in Monroe."

Danny helped her up and in. Slowly made her way through the tunnel and came to a few odd items. "Guys…they were definitely in here…I'm at the end. It goes down into some kind of channel. I'm gonna check it out."

Flack and Danny headed out to the street to see where she would come out.

"It was nice of Monroe to come down and help." Flack started a conversation.

"Yeah, she's been doing that a lot lately…You know when she was sitting with you in the hospital, she met your dad."

"Really, why didn't you tell me?" He tried to sound nonchalant about the fact that he was just finding out now about it.

"I didn't find out until a few nights ago. Lindsay totally forgot in all of the excitement. Plus your old man told Lindsay not to say anything since he would call; which I am assuming he didn't."

"No." They rounded a corner and saw her coming from an alley.

"Hey it comes out in a basement down the alley. There are wigs and other stuff down that tunnel that need to be collected. I didn't touch any of it." She threw her hands up to show that she was totally hands off of the evidence.

"Thank you, you heading back home?"

"Thought I might, unless you need me to do more of your job."

"Get outta here, wiseass. I'll see you tonight for dinner, love you." He hugged and kissed her before she left.

Lindsay was well out of sight when Flack decided to comment. "Wow, I never thought I would see the day."

"What?" Danny tried to throw as much attitude into the one word question.

"Danny Messer in love and domesticated."

**

"Lind-say." She loved it when he said her name with more stress on the end.

She came out of the bedroom around lunch time to find him standing at the front door with a dog under one arm.

"Aww, he's cute, where d'ya find him?" She started petting him under the chin and talking to the dog.

"He's Ruben's. I came to borrow him to test a theory that I have. But I couldn't pass up the change to come up and see you." She kept petting the dog until Danny's lips touched hers. She knew he had to go, but she never passed up the chance for a kiss.

"You gotta go back to work." She pushed away only to fall back onto his lips for a few more moments. She pulled away again. "You really need to go. Finish the day and come home to me."

**  
Later that day Stella's name showed up on caller ID "Stella, Hi."

"Lindsay…I need you now." The urgency in Stella's voice scared her.

"Is…is Danny alright."

"Yeah he's fine, I need you to step in as a double. We're in the area."

"I can be there in five."

"I need you here in two."

**

Lindsay had never run so fast in her life. She used to run back in Montana, but she hadn't even tried it in New York unless she was in a park on a path. Running on the sidewalk to where Stella was, was a completely different challenge. There were people, newsstands, garbage bins, and everything else that one might not expect to run into. She was absolutely was winded once she reached Stella.

She was slipping on a vest and zipping her shirt back up when Danny arrived at the scene and came running. He'd heard over the radio that Stella found someone to stand in for the third girl, but he didn't know it was Lindsay until he got to there.

"What do you think you're doin'?" His head went to one side and his eyes showed how deeply concerned he was.

"Danny, I'll be fine." Adrenaline was still pumping through her veins from the hurried trip over.

"We have undercovers who can do this." He was pleading with her not to do this. She could hear it in his voice.

"You're out of time. If someone doesn't get in there in four minutes her friend dies." She walked away and left him there thinking.

Stella and the girl from the robbery directed her where to go in the building. Lindsay found the door and hesitated before she knocked on the door. She could hear chatter in her ear from all the people what had microphones. Once she finally knocked on the door she heard Danny's voice.

"C'mon Kiddo."

Danny listened very, very closely. He heard the shatter of glass and two words clearly "Try again."

"She's been made." He dropped the headphones and left the van. His gun was drawn before he hit the floor where the apartment was.

Stella, Flack and other members of the department were in front of him at the apartment door and they couldn't get out of the way fast enough.

"Lindsay." He looked through the smoke left over from the flash bomb. "Lindsay." He looked around again and followed the faintest sound of her voice.

"Danny." He checked her over from head to toe and pulled her close.

"Thank God, you alright?" He whispered still holding her.

"Yeah." He led her out.

**

They stood by the truck for a long time. He checked and double checked to make sure there was not a scratch on her. His adrenaline was pumping and it took a long while for it to pass. The world passed around them. The two suspects were hauled off in marked cars. SWAT jumped back in their truck and disappeared down the street. The crime scene tape was coming down when Mac approached.

"We need you both to head down to the office to fill out all the proper forms about what happened here today."

"You go it boss." He turned to Lindsay who was content spending more of Saturday with him than she thought she might. "You ready to head out?"

"Yeah, let's get this done."

**

It was hours of forms, statements, and questions. Lindsay finished up before he did and went to his office. Flack was walking by and saw her sitting at his desk looking over information about the Bozeman PD. He could see her leg bouncing under the desk with extra energy.

"You thinkin' 'bout goin' back?" He questioned, sitting down in the chair at the desk across from her.

"No, just checking up on some friends back in Montana."

"On the BPD website? Must be some friends."

"They're on the force back there." She clicked off of the website and sat back in the chair. "You doing anything right now?"

"No. Why?" She usually did not ask for favors. Actually he could not think of one time that she asked for anything.

"Would you mind taking me home? I am going stir crazy just sitting here."

"Sure."

They both got up and went for the door. She stopped quickly and wrote a quick note on a yellow sticky and stuck it to the screen before following Flack down to his car.

**

She missed police work more than she thought. The hunt for evidence and the confrontation of the suspect left her body buzzing. She took all that energy and rushed Danny when he entered the apartment. The first time they were together that night, they had sex. It was fueled by the rush from the day. He let her take the lead. He was amazed how her mouth could be everywhere at once. And where her mouth wasn't, her hands were.

Words barely passed between them. He couldn't recall how they'd lost their clothes. The only thing he could remember was how she held him still with her legs when he filled completely. He began to move. Each motion was heaven. Each push was harder. She begged and he granted.

And when the heavens opened up and it rained stars, the world turned upside down for both of them.

Sprinkling kisses on any skin he could reach, he whispered "I love you."

**

When they were together again later than night, they made love. He didn't know if it was the way she looked in his shirt or the bed head she had from their earlier encounter, but she stood at the kitchen counter eating pizza they had delivered and all he wanted to do was worship her.

It started with a small kiss. He was standing next her. She threw her napkin in the trash and finished her beer. He tried to brush a kiss across her cheek as she passed him. She saw it coming and turned into the kiss. It was supposed to be a small, quick peck, but when he felt lips instead of cheek, she was backed up against the fridge.

Many soft…slow…long…wet…deep…greedy kisses were exchanged as they made it down the hall in slow motion.

Very few sounds were heard in their room save the short gasps of air as he touched her. Her quiet moans sent shivers though him. She was extremely sensitive to his touch. Each button of his shirt that she was wearing slowly came undone and the newly exposed skin was explored. She shuttered under the intensity of his eyes in anticipation.

Missing her taste, he covered her mouth with hers, laying his body atop his.

"More." She begged

His jeans were tossed to the floor.

"More."

He was back with her covering her body with his.

"More." It's a moan by now.

In one motion, they are one again.

"Ahhh." She hissed.

"I'll remember what 'more' means for next time." Laughter filled the words.

Finding a rhythm, he whispered words of love and compassion. And before the darkness behind her eyelids is replaced with the pure white light that only pleasure can bring, she thought she heard him say "forever."

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Thank you. Please review.


	28. Chapter 28

_I am having a really rough day at work, so I decided to head home for lunch and publish the next chapter. This touches on Love Run Cold and Hung out to Dry. Make my day and send me a review._

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Danny was trying to leave the apartment to get to work on time. Lindsay had just come home from school and was on the phone again. She was on the phone a lot lately. She'd be on the phone for short periods of time and then after she hung up, she was lost in deep thought. He'd catch a few words here and there: badge number, investigator, four years experience. Utterly confused, he checked his watch; if he didn't move now, he'd be late getting to the lab.

**

"Sorry Mac, I got hung up." Danny raised the yellow tape and entered the icy crime scene.

"No doubt it had something to do with that girlfriend of yours." Mac took his focus off of what he was working on momentarily and another icicle fell from the ceiling.

"Ha ha." He stated very dryly. "Yes, to the girlfriend part, not to what you're thinking. There's something going on with her, Mac. I hear her talking on the phone and it's all cryptic. If I get too close, the call ends or she moves to another part of the apartment." Mac and Danny moved to investigate below the stage. "Mac, I've never been with a woman long enough to move in with her. I've never dated anyone this long. But even something's going on and she hasn't been the same."

"Danny, have you asked her outright about what's going on?" Leave it to Mac to suggest the obvious.

"No, we've been passing each other. We've been on opposite schedules."

"Talk to her. Ask her about what's going on. If she tells you, listen. But she may not be ready to share, so just let her know that you're there." Once again Mac had the 'well duh' solution.

Danny checked his watch. It was 2:30 in the morning, he couldn't call or text, but he wanted to. He formulated a plan in his mind and turned the rest of his focus and energy towards the investigation.

**

Lindsay slept, but not well. Nights that Danny was out, she didn't sleep soundly. It made the next day hell, but then she slept better the next night. She hoped to see him before leaving for school, but no such luck.

She was getting ready for the day in her classroom when Danny texted.

"Dinner tonight 7pm." The message ended with the name of a restaurant that was a little more upscale than the diner by her old apartment.

Lindsay's acceptance was sent out and she started her day.

**

Danny sat at a table sipping a glass of wine, it was his second. What he really wanted at this point was a beer. The waiter stepped up to refill, but Danny waved him off. Picking up his phone he checked it again for a message or call that he might have missed. It was 7:45 and she was very late. He'd sent messages but got nothing back. He was officially worried and a little upset. He paid his bill and left.

He walked a few blocks in endless thought trying to figure out what was going on with Lindsay. Cryptic phone calls and now she didn't show up to a date. Worry played more on his mind than anything else. His phone rang. 'Lindsay' showed up in the caller ID.

"Messer." She couldn't tell how he was feeling by that one word.

"Hey, Danny." She sounded so apologetic and out of breath. He didn't know that she rushed to find a phone.

"Monore, What going on? It's been a long time since I've been stood up on a date." Lindsay heard the hurt and confusion in his words. She could only imagine how he felt, sitting there by himself waiting for her. But her very last minute meeting after school ran a lot longer than she thought it would. She felt horrible. Her phone battery had died and she had no way to break the conversation to make a phone call.

"Sorry, something came up." It was the truth. Something did come up and it was more involved than she ever thought it would be.

"Phone's not workin'?" Why didn't she just call? Why didn't she just get up and find a phone and call him. She could have asked someone around her for a phone. She was sure there was a phone somewhere around where her meeting was.

"I'm really sorry." She was. She wanted this resolved one way or another, both the topic of her meeting and the awfulness that she felt about missing their date.

"Are…we alright?" The unsuredness in his voice was thick.

She came to the decision right then and there that no matter what, they would be. "Yeah, sure."

"So do you want to talk to me about what was so important that it kept you from being with the likes of me?" The question was lighter in tone then the rest of the conversation.

"I don't have all the details and I'm still working things out. I promise we'll sit down and talk when it all comes together. Where are you?" She really wasn't ready to let him in on her secret yet. It was not right that she was keeping this from him, but she wasn't ready. She wasn't sure about how it would change things between them.

"Headin' home."

"Eat anything yet?"

"No, you see, I was supposed to eat with my girl tonight. No girl, no eat."

"Meet you at Ray's for a slice?"

"Boom, you know what I like." With a more optimistic feeling and a spring in his step, he hung up and put Ray's in the cross hairs.

**

Danny sat at his desk a few days later filling out something. Things had gone back to normal, but Lindsay still was a little distant. She would try so hard when he was around to act normal and over did it at times. He could see right through it. There was something playing on her mind and he wanted to know what it was so that he could fix it.

He wrote the date next to his signature and realized that it was almost a year ago when they met. Danny thought it was funny that he could remember the day that he met her, but he couldn't pin down the date that he considered her his girlfriend.

**

"Lindsay, I think it's time to let Danny in on what going on." Mac told her. "Things might change for you, for him, for both of you."

Lindsay thought about the words as her ears heard them. Had she waited too long to, was it going to me too much as once?

"I know that you're right, but how do you work something like this into a conversation?" She pointed to all the paperwork in front of her. "There is no easy seg-way into this. I'm not sure how I am going to handle this being part of my life again, how is he?" She sat back in the booth and crossed her arms in front of her.

"If Danny loves you a much as you think, and as much as I know that he does, there's not going to be a problem. He'll be there to support you in any way that you need. And if you need help talking to him about this, call me."

She nodded her head in appreciation.

**

Red roses were delivered to her room early the next day.

"A year ago today, I met you and I haven't been the same since. Dinner out, tonight 7:00. More details later. D-"

Wow, had it already been a year? She hadn't been the same either. There were so many changes in her life that she's made.

**

He made reservations and said he would pick her up at home. That was the plan, but an hour and a half before dinner, he called.

"Hey Montana."

"Canceling on me again Messer? I feel like we're just starting to date again." She kidded with him.

"I am not canceling, not tonight. Just meet me at the lab, I'm running a bit late." He was getting into the truck. He hoped to have time to log in his evidence and have a shower. He had to have a shower. Even he wouldn't go out with himself smelling the way he did. The truck might even need to have the interior cleaned.

"Alright, I'll meet you there. I'll hang out in your office."

"You are the best."

"I know."

**

Lindsay finished getting ready quickly and beat Danny to the lab. She was chatting with Mac she smelled him step off the elevator.

"Well hello, Ms. Monroe." He looked her over from the top of her hear to the pointed tips of her shoes. Her hair was freshly curled, there was a hint of makeup, and her eyes were sparkling. "Wow, you look nice." He took a look at the dress she wore. He'd seen her in a dress before on graduation day, but this was a little black date dress and he was hoping it would be a short date.

"Well hello, Mr. Messer. Why do you smell like the floor of a bar?" She brought her hand up to her nose hoping that the smell of her lotion would mask the smell of him.

He knew how odoriferous he was. "Yeah, frat house, party, murder, lots of smoke and alcohol everywhere. Hard to avoid." He took another look at her and then down at himself. "I am hanging out with all the wrong people, you know that? I'm gonna grab a shower and then we can go."

**

"So, it's been a year?" Her curly hair bounced when she nodded her head and looked at him with a bit of sarcasm in her statement. To him, she looked sexy as hell.

Dinner was over, cups of coffee had been drunk and the night was dwindling.

"It _has_ been a year." He agreed.

"And what a year it has been." She mentioned.

His eyes went wide at the thought of the events over the last twelve months. They had been through a lot whe Flack, Aiden, Stella and Louie and that was all since Christmas. If it weren't for Lindsay, he didn't know what he would have done.

"Yeah," was the only thing that he could come up with.

There was a pause in the flow of conversation and she saw an opening. "And the next one's going to be interesting too." She seemed nervous. Her posture changed. She started fidgeting with the corner of her napkin.

His detective and observation skills went on high alert. "Really why do you say that?" _Be cool, be cool, and don't push her._ He thought.

"You ready to get out of here? Let's go home." Jumping up from her chair she collected her purse and wrap and rushed to the lobby hoping that he would be following. She really didn't want to talk there.

"Lindsay Monroe!" He was close behind and got her attention with the use of her full name. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Yeah." Lindsay let out an exasperated sigh.

"I have to know what is going on with you…Ok, I mean, you and I have this thing right? This chemistry, like we're into each other, but every time we were in the same room today it's like…" Lindsay just stared down at the floor. "Don't tell me that you don't feel it also." The weirdness factor was crazy between them. He hunched down to get to her eye level.

"Look Danny, I have been…working some stuff out…that I thought I had…put behind me…I didn't mean for this to happen." She was totally distraught. And it wasn't getting better.

"It's okay." He wanted to understand. He wanted to know what was going one but it wasn't his place to ask. Once again he made eye contact with her and took a step forward. "If there's anything you need from me, just let me know, okay?" His simple request almost brought tears to her eyes.

At some point his hands had made it to the base of her neck on the back of her head, securely holding her face near his. Their foreheads touched. She nodded and okay to his request while he held her close.

This man was her rock, this man was her base.

"You know what; let's go home, we have some talking to do." She'd resigned herself to the fact that it was time. "We need to stop by your work first. There's a file there I need."

"Okay, we can do that."

Lindsay sent out a text message and they headed towards the lab.

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_The next chapter will answer the important question of what is going on. Let me know that you want to answer. _

_Thank you for the support you have given me. Please continue._


	29. Chapter 29

_Okay, I guess you just want to start reading so I will hold everything until the next chapter. _

_Thank you for all you do for me. Keep reading and reviewing please_

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When they were walking to the car, Lindsay made Danny promise not to ask any questions until they got home. He had so many. And a lot ofthem popped up the moment they stepped into Mac's office. Mac was sitting behind his desk checking something on his computer.

Danny could tell Mac had come into work just to do this small task. The black t-shirt, jeans and leather jacket were not things that he would just wear to work. He always dressed for the office if he were planning on spending some time there.

Mac stood and came around the edge of his desk when he spotted Danny and Lindsay in the hall. Mac handed her a large manila envelope that was at least two inches thick, she hugged it to her chest and thanked him profusely. He gave her a fatherly hug and sent them on their way.

In the truck on the way home, he thought about what happened in the lab. Why did Mac know? Why did Mac know before Danny? How long had he known? What was in the large envelope that Lindsay held so protectively in her lap? He hoped all these questions and more would be answered.

**

A hand was waved at him three times since the truck was parked. He tried to ask her a question about what was going on three different times and she'd put a hand up telling him to stop each time. When he tried the fourth time, grabbed his arm, stopped him in his tracks and made her point clear.

"Look, we're not even in the front door yet, let's please at least get that far." There was desperation in her voice. "I'd like to change clothes, get something to drink and then start because once I do, I'm not gonna stop. There's a lot that I have to tell you and I am sure that you have a lot of questions." She started to walk again and it was a little more determined at this point.

At the front door, she started a countdown in her head. She slipped her key in the locks and listened for the click. When she got to 'one,' she turned the knob and pushed the door open and expected the questions to start, but they didn't. Danny just walked around her and into their bedroom. When she followed, she found that he was very focused on changing into a clean pair of shorts that he normally wore when he went to play ball with Flack and a very faded Giants t-shirt. He left the bedroom, leaving her to change.

**

There were two bottles of water sitting on the counter when she emerged. He was checking through the mail patiently waiting. She looked down at the envelope between her hands, nervous about how things would go.

"Let's talk over here." She went to the pool table, flipping on every light so that they could see. She tossed the two inch think envelope on the table and it landed with a thud. Walking around to the far side, she put her hands on the rail and propped herself up. He stopped across from her and mirrored her stance.

"What's goin' on?"

She braced herself and tried to figure out how to start. There was a lot to tell, there were a lot of twists and turns.

"I don't know where to start, so hang in there with me." She looked at him for a moment and then reached for the envelope. "A couple of weeks ago, I received a package at school postmarked Bozeman. Thinking it was something from my parents, I opened it up. Inside I found," Lindsay opened the envelope and pulled out a mixed stack of photos, papers and files. Pulling out a folder she flipped it open and took out some 8x10 color photos sealed in plastic and listed as evidence, "these instead." The photos were handed over the table to Danny. He studied them carefully. They were of a crime scene. He flipped through the five graphic photos: four different victims and an overall from what might have been the front door of the small restaurant. "Those are photos of the cold case scene that I worked and never solved; except the Bozeman Police Department did not take these." She pointed to the clock on the wall in the overall shot. "These were taken twenty minutes before the cops showed up."

"So the murderer took them. But why send them to you? Why now? How did he know where you were?" He still didn't understand what was going on.

She handed him a photo copy of a newspaper article. "Decade Passes and Still No Leads" was the headline.

She summed up for him. "It's been ten years since the shooting. I was lead detective for the past few years. The article mentioned that I moved and became a teacher in New York. He found me and sent me those. I took the envelope and photos to Mac to process to see if we could get anything new off of them."

Danny continued to look at the article, mumbling some of the details as he came across them. "Four dead, shot gun, local diner, no leads…" He read silently for a moment. "Linds, this says that not only were you the lead investigator but also a survivor." He looked up from the article. "That night at Cozy's, you were talkin' 'bout this case, your case." He put more emphasis on the last two words. "Three girls and a waitress were killed and there was one witness." He was having a light bulb moment. "You were that witness. You would've been, what seventeen, maybe eighteen years old?" Then it hit him…oh it hit him hard. Those girls were her friends; she had to walk down the streets everyday in that town as the lone survivor of that awful crime. And then she could not solve it. "Oh, Lindsay, I am so sorry."

"I was in the bathroom when the whole thing happened. I guess the guy who did this wanted to remind me that I still couldn't get to him." She chuckled. "He didn't know that I had the backing of the NYPD and Mac Taylor. Mac had the whole case file faxed over. He's been looking it over. I was meeting with him that night that I missed having drinks with you. He called at the end of the day and wanted to go over the case file. I thought we would be done long before I was supposed to meet you."

"Why didn't you call?"

"My phone was dead. Something in my purse kept one of the buttons pushed in and it drained the batteries. I couldn't call from Mac's phone because I didn't want you asking any more questions." She hoped that he would understand.

"Did he find anything?" Danny started sliding papers around the table, looking at various items.

"There were no other finger prints on the envelope or photos other than mine. The stamps were self adhesive. Adam and others studied the photos with a fine tooth comb and got nothing out of them other than the time on the clock. Last night when I talked to Mac, he said he had a DNA sample that he pulled from the flap of the envelope. He was going to run it again all the databases."

It was hard to read Danny's expression. He was still looking at the huge case file that was now spread out everywhere. "Lindsay, why am I just learning about all this now?" He tried to keep any hurt from his question.

"When I moved to New York, I was free and clear of my past. There had been no progress made in 10 years, so I never thought any would be made at all. I thought maybe I could have a life where I wasn't controlled by all this. I'd gotten away from the shadow cast by this case. I'd gotten away from the looks and whispers that followed me when I walked down the street back home. Here, in my new life, I was clean. Then you started asking questions and I told you half the story so I wouldn't have to see the look on your face that you have right now." She couldn't read the look but it was the one she had seen so many times. It was a cross between shock, pity, and confusion. "I'm not the poor little teenager who survived the bloodbath in the diner, anymore, but I'm also not longer the detective who couldn't solve her own crime. However, it looks like the case found me and I might finally have something to put this guy away."

**

It was way past midnight. Danny and Lindsay say pretzel-legged on opposite ends of the pool table. Spread between them was a sea of paper, stacked neatly into piles of photos, autopsy reports, witness reports, interview documents and newspaper clippings. Danny carefully looked at each item. He'd break the silence bubble every once in a while if he had a question. Other than the occasional question and the flutter of paper being passed, both sat hunched over and quiet.

"Arrrg." She let out a frustrated grunt.

"Very attractive Monroe." He didn't even look up when the sarcastic line came out.

"I've been looking at this for years. Nothing's changed. I have this file memorized forwards and back. I'm going to bed." Stiff legs unfolded and dropped to the floor. She hobbled over to where he was and kissed him on the cheek. "Don't stay up too long. You have an early shift tomorrow…well today." He never looked up from the paper he was studying.

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_Let me know what you think, please please, please. I am begging. _


	30. Chapter 30

_And Season 3 continues. Thank you to all of those who have continued to review. I love hearing about your favorite images or parts of the chapters. Please keeping going. I am getting to a point where I am hand writing a chapter, typing a chapter and editing a chapter. Its getting ver confusing. Stay with me._

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It had been a week since they talked about her case. They spent a lot of time the last seven days talking and straightening out details; making sure that he understood what happened. He still had a lot of questions and she had the answers. It was all that they talked about. It felt like the case was taking over her life again. One thing that they agreed about was that this was going to be kept between the two of them and Mac. Lindsay started thinking of ways to put as many people around her so that the case was not the only thing they discussed.

**

"Oh, that can't be good." Flack stated as Lindsay stretched out over the table to take a tricky shot. She concentrated harder on her shot thinking that was what he was talking about.

They were just goofing off and hanging out. Danny was tying up loose ends on a case he picked up.

"Lindsay." Flack said getting her attention. She looked up at him standing on the far end of the pool table leaning on his cue in front of him with both hands close to his chest. He pointed at something behind her without changing his stance.

Without standing, she took a quick look over her shoulder and what she saw made her miss the shot she'd lined up.

Danny had come into the bar, but that's not what caught her attention. Her attention was drawn to the corner of Danny's eye and his cheekbone; both looked swollen. The whole side of his face was tinged red and he was draggin'. She didn't move; just looked. He looked tired. His eyes were dull and grey.

"What did the other guy look like and how big was he?" Flack questioned, knowing that Danny had a short fuse and didn't take a shot from anyone without getting in a few punches of his own.

"Ha ha, very funny. This…" He pointed to his face. "This just happened." He _so_ didn't want to talk about it. He didn't want to talk about it at all.

"Was it that tattoo guy I saw you questioning this afternoon? That guy wasn't so big. How'd he land a hit like that?" Flack pointed to the side of his friend's face.

"It wasn't that guy." Danny mumbled it.

"What?"

"The tattoo guy, he's not the one who hit me." It was louder and clear.

"Who hit you?" This time Lindsay was the one who wanted to know. She touched the spot only to have him flinch away from her fingers.

"Ow." He pulled back and out of her reach.

"Sorry."

"A mother slapped me. I told her that her dead daughter loved her. Obviously she didn't believe me and this," He pointed to his face, "was how she repaid me. Hey Monroe." He put his arm around her waist and kissed her cheek. "The rest of the day was spent asking all the right questions to all the wrong people. Then we got to the tattoo guy, yeah, evidence points to him."

Lindsay lost all interest in the game she was playing. "Flack, I'm gonna take him home and get some ice on that eye."

"Uh, huh. You do that Monroe. Fix him up real good." Flack took one more drink of his beer and followed them out moments later after clearing the table.

**

"Tell me again how this happened." Lindsay was putting a package of frozen peas against the side of his face. He pulled away at the first touch of the cold against his face. "You big baby, sit still."

He sat on the couch with her facing him, sitting sideways. "I pulled this case, a young girl was murdered. She was part of this group of girls who are very comfortable with who they are." Lindsay had this very confused look on her face.

"Com'ere." He got up from the couch and went to the computer, pressing the frozen peas to the side of his face as he went.

Lindsay sat down in the chair at the desk and he stood behind her. Taking the faux ice pack from his face and putting on the counter, he came to stand behind Lindsay. His arms framed her in on both sides and went to the keyboard. He started up Wikipedia's website and searched "SuicideGirls."

"Here read this." He stepped back and applied the ice pack again.

Lindsay took a few minutes to read everything on that site and then 'googled' them to get more information. He saw her sit and read the information carefully. She scrolled through the pages and stared. The reflection from the computer screen lit up her face. He watched her more than what was being shown on the screen. She cleared the monitor and turned back to him.

"So you thought that one of the Girls was the guilty one?"

"Yeah, we brought them in for interviews. They were…interesting." He couldn't think of a better word.

"Why interesting?" She could see that something had happened that made him feel uncomfortable during the interviews.

"I can usually handle a strong personality in a woman, but for four hours, sitting across from eight different strong willed women, it got interesting. One asked if she could take me home with her." He looked embarrassed to admit that.

"Aww. Danny was in over his head." Lindsay showed absolutely no compassion.

"Shaddup wiseass." He walked away and turned on SportsCenter.

**

"Lucy, I'm home." Danny burst through the front door with his hands full.

"Cute." She turned to look at him from her place in the kitchen, where dinner was being made. The bruise and swelling on his face was completely healed after a few days of Lindsay's tender loving care. "What's in the pink boxes?"

"Wedding cake samples." He said it just as if he was telling her the weather.

The color drained from her face and her eyes went huge. Danny noticed the look on her face and realized what he just said could suggest a few things. He started talking quickly.

"Stella, Flack and I, we um…worked a case where a woman planned a whole wedding without the guy's knowledge. Flack went to check some of the places out that she had visited in preparation and the bakery sent samples back. We all got some to bring home." His eyes were still as big as saucers and his thoughts raced. What was she thinking? Did she really thing he was proposing? Has she even thought that far? What if he really was asking, what would she say? He loved her. He couldn't see any part of his future without her. He just hadn't used the term 'marriage.'

She tried to cover. "Good, I have dinner, you have dessert." She busied herself in the kitchen and wouldn't make eye contact with him. It was starting to get awkward. It was something that was new in their relationship and neither one liked the feel of it. Danny stepped into the small kitchen to put the cake boxes down. Lindsay moved way out of the way when he needed to get past.

"Okay, why are we so tense? What are you thinking, I saw your face. Something went through your brain?"

"I was surprised, shocked. You came in so happy and you had wedding cake samples. I didn't know what you were thinking. You caught me off guard. It was a shot of adrenaline to the system." She finally looked at him. Concern could be seen in his features.

He widened his stance and put his hands on her hips. "Did you know that I've never had a girlfriend for longer than six months?"

"No, but should I be worried?"

"Did you know that it's been years since I have brought someone to meet my parents?"

"Yes, I knew that." He gave her a look of 'well aren't you the smarty pants.' She moved out of his hands to work at the counter. He came to stand behind her, putting his hands on the counter and pinning her to the workspace. His mouth came very close to her ear.

Did you know that I have never moved in with a woman or included one in my life at work as I have with you?"

"No." She was glad that she was facing away from him. The realizations from his statements were loud and clear to her.

"Linds, I cannot see a time any time in my life that doesn't include you. Has marriage played into my thoughts? Not yet. But I'm not goin' anywhere."

She turned around in the small space between him and the counter. It took a lot for him to say the things that he did. All the tension between them was gone.

"Now, feed me, I'm hungry." He demanded. She pulled away and rolled her eyes, their serious moment was over.

"You're always hungry."

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Review for me please, make writer lady happy.


	31. Chapter 31

_A/N: Thank you for staying with this. It's become a fun challange tying little details of the show and the cases they work into this storyline. Please read and review._

It was early November and there was a chill in the air. It was fall. The leaves had already changed and were falling off the trees in the park. There were a group of kids making huge piles and jumping in them only to start over and do it all again. Lindsay tightened her scarf around her and she took off down the path after watching them for a while.

It was the first Saturday she'd been alone in a while. Danny was working. It felt odd to her to be alone, but it was also kinda liberating.

She texted Danny. "Don't you just love New York in the fall?"

"Isn't that from a movie?" Was what she got back. She thought it sounded familiar, but didn't know if it came from a movie or what, but she did love New York in the fall. The ground was carpeted in leaves that had fallen. They crunched under her feet. She shuffled through them. Made little piles and kicked them around. She took handfuls and threw them up in the air and watched them fall back to the ground.

Her phone rang in the middle of her playtime.

"Hello?" She was a little out of breath.

"Lindsay?"

"Mom?" Lindsay put a hand over her other ear to block some of the background noise.

"Hey, are you okay? What are you doing?"

"I," she stood up proud and tall, "am playing in the leaves at the park." She spun around in her leaf wonderland. She could hear her mother laughing at the other end.

"How are things out there?" Her mother asked.

Lindsay stopped playing and started following the sidewalk. "Things here are great. The kids I have this year are shaping up to be a good group. Danny is doing well and there might be a lead in the case from the diner." There was silence on the other end of the phone. "Hello? Mom?"

"Lindsay, what do you mean there may be a lead?" Her mother was confused.

Lindsay realized that she hadn't told her mother about the delivery. She found a bench in the sun. "Mom, about a month and a half ago I got a package at school. It included photos from the crime scene at the diner, but they were taken by the guy who did the shooting. Danny and Mac have gone over the photos and the envelope and there might be some new evidence, but we're keeping this quiet mom. Don't go telling the BINGO ladies."

"Okay…wow." There was silence for a moment. "You coming home for Christmas?"

The question surprised Lindsay. "I really haven't thought that far. Let me talk to Danny and I'll get back to you. How's Dad?"

"Things here are good." The two women chatted for a while, before ending the conversation.

She sat on the bench and thought a little more about Christmas. She was so wound up about fall that she hadn't thought about the next month and Christmas.

With the fall weather and talk of the holidays, she wanted pie: pumpkin pie, apple pie, and cherry. Lindsay was in the mood to head home and get in the kitchen. Stopping by the store on the way home, she got everything that she would need.

**

Turning on some music, she got to work. She made crusts from scratch, flour drifted in the air around her. She carefully made lattice work to go on top of her creations. Carefully pressing the dough into the pie pans, she was reminded of growing up.

She used to do this with her mom and grandma back in Montana when she was a little girl. She had a special chair that she stood on at the counter and they let her make small kid-sized pies. She would make intricate designs in the top of her pies before they went into the oven.

She was proud of the aromas that were swirling through the apartment and the pies that were cooling on the racks. Her phone started to ring, but she was elbow deep in dirty dish water. By the time that she rinsed and dried her hands, it'd stopped and a new text appeared. "What do a moon rock, bear trap, paint ball, black cocaine, molasses and Macy's balloons have in common?" She didn't have to wait for an answer because a new text came in. "I don't know either, but they're going to keep me at work for a while."

She looked at the labors of love sitting on the counter with no one to eat them. If he couldn't come home for dinner, dinner would go to him. "I'm bringing dinner. What time?"

**

"I'm here, come and get me." Danny jumped off the stool and startled Hawkes with how fast he left the lab.

Downstairs he was met by an overloaded Lindsay.

"Hello, I have been looking forward to this." He looked in the bags with the food. "It's nice to see you too." He gave her a kiss.

"Wiseass." His nose picked something up from the bags.

"Is that pie?"

"Yes, homemade."

"Homemade?"

"Yes, apple, pumpkin and cherry. There's one of each at home too, so you have to share. There is a small turkey sandwich. I figured that you would want more dessert than dinner." Her words were loaded. She had no idea how much he wanted dessert, but not the kind that fit in the bags that she brought.

**

She laughed so hard at him. He was like a little kid with his toys, he didn't want to share, but after cutting himself a healthy slice from each pie, the rest of the lab was allowed some.

"How much longer do you have?" She asked him.

"An hour, maybe two tops." He told her between bites.

"Want me to hang around? We can then go home together." She watched as he scraped he last bit of pie filling and crust off the paper plate. If he didn't stop, he would eat the plate next.

"What are you going to do? I have lab work to finish."

"I can catch up on my e-mails, get some work of my own done, I can find things to do." She told him.

"Sounds good." He kissed her at the office door and headed back to Hawkes.

**

He loved glass walls in the lab. From his place he could see her sitting at his desk working on the computer. It was distracting, but there was that feeling of comfort that came from having her close.

She was focusing hard on whatever she was working on. Without taking her eyes off of the screen, she reached into her bag and got a scrunchie and pulled her hair back.

He received a text. "You're staring, hurry up and finish and take her home." It was from Hawkes who was sitting three feet away from him. Danny looked over his shoulder and smiled at his friend.

"Alright, alright." And he went back to his microscope.

She was finding it hard not to stare at him, especially when he pushed his glasses up to his forehead and studied something in the microscope. When he pulled away, he found her staring at him, elbow on the desk, chin in hand and she looked hungry and it wasn't for food.

**

They were up very late after coming home from the lab the night before and yet she woke with the sun. Danny laid next to her, completely asleep on his stomach and hanging off of his side of the bed. This left his back totally exposed to her. She propped herself up on her elbow facing him.

She traced his spine from the base of his neck to where it disappeared under the sheet and then back up. She traced his shoulder blades, drew circles and random designs on the back of his ribs. She used the most feather light touches, wanting to touch but not wanting to wake him up. His back was a blank canvas for a masterpiece that only she could see.

She loved the feel of his skin beneath her fingers. She started making strokes up his neck and behind the exposed ear. She was so careful not to do anything that would wake him up and enjoyed her secret exploration.

He came awake at her first touch, but didn't want to alert. He gritted his teeth under her ticklish touches and bit his lip to stop the moan that wanted to escape. He wanted to roll over and reply the events of the night before that left them both exhausted. Relaxing every muscle in his body, he let her explore.

It was an odd feeling. She felt like she was over stepping some line by exploring and touching him like this while he was asleep. But the feeling was momentary. Rolling toward him, a kissed was brushed on the back of his shoulder, snuggled against him and fell back asleep.

**

Monday morning, Lindsay got a delivery at school. It was a cheesy teacher mug full of sharpened pencils. There was a note: "Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me want to buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils…" -'You've Got Mail.'

She thought back to her walk in the park when she texted him part of that same quote.

During her break she called Danny ready to thank him for the gift and to give him a hard time about quoting a chick flick.

"Danny Messer's Phone." But the voice was not Danny's

"Where's Danny?" She questioned.

"Lindsay?"

"Adam?" Lindsay checked her phone to make sure she didn't misdial.

"Yeah."

"Adam, why do you have Danny's phone?"

"Well…there was coffee…and an accident…the phone dropped. I could fix it." Adam was rambling and talking with his hands. Lindsay could picture the awkward man talking and looking up at the ceiling while he was trying to explain things.

"Okay, so now it works. Is Danny around so that you can give him back his phone?"

Adam looked around but didn't see Danny in trace, A\V lab or the break room. Turning around in his chair, he spotted Danny at his desk.

"Yeah, I see him." Adam rounded all the corners that stood between him and Danny.

"Danny, Lindsay's on your phone." He held the phone out in from of him as if it were toxic.

"Give me that." Danny snatched it from Adam and checked the screen. "Montana?"

"Danny, what happened to your phone?"

"It took a swim in my coffee. Got the stuff all over me. Adam fixed my phone, but it still reeks." He made a face when he caught a sniff.

"Thank you for my pencil bouquet and the movie reminder. It was sweet."

"I'm glad you think so. I have the movie for us to watch tonight." He could picture it: the two of them snuggled up under the blanket from the back of the couch, his arm around her, holding her tight. It'd been a while since they had a quiet night at home without him coming home late or not at all due to a case or late shift. He already had the makings for spaghetti in the fridge and he was planning on leaving a bit early to get a jump on making dinner.

"Raincheck?"

The little image in his mind popped and disappeared. Lindsay had never postponed their plans so he was curious. "Okay, you meeting Mac tonight?"

"No, some kids are putting on a Thanksgiving program. I want to stay for it. I'll be home around nine."

"We can postpone until tomorrow night, then. I'm may see if Hawkes wants to go out for drinks. It's been a long rough day for him." He looked around the lab to see if he could see his friend around anywhere."

"See you at home later, love you."

"Yeah, love you."

_There you have it. Oh, Christmas is coming up. I wonder what is going to happen around Christmas. Will she go back to Montana? Will they spend it together? It's coming soon. Review please. I would love to reach 350 before chapter 40. (Yes, there will be a chapter 40) _


	32. Chapter 32

_For those of you who pray, I ask you to send one up for my friend Gary who is needing a little guidance right now. I open with this because he needs it more than anything and its playing more on my mind than anything else. I thank you from the deepest part of my heart and soul._

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The fuzzy time between sleep and awake was her favorite part of the day: Danny was there with her, his arms around her, keeping her safe and secure…but not this time. Lindsay woke up and had to think about where she was. The walls around her were half red and half blue with a white stripe running across the middle. She was in a small single bed with no head or footboard and a soft Yankees blanket with a warn corner was wrapped around her. The only place that all this made sense was in the childhood bedroom of Danny Messer.

Wrapping her arms around herself to replace the warmth of the blanket she left on the bed, she stood and studied the room. She was asleep when she entered the room and was placed on the bed. Her eyes wandered around the walls. There were old Yankee pennants, Giants pennants, and framed family photos. He had a desk and a tall bookshelf on one wall. The bookshelf pulled her in. Her gaze flowed from shelf to shelf, object to object. Her fingers traced the spines of faded books that might have been from high school or even earlier. She smiled when she saw 'Dear Mr. Henshaw.' It was something her own students were currently reading.

The top three shelves were dedicated to one thing: Little League. Lindsay took a step closer to get a better look. There were trophies, a lot of them from different years and for different reasons. She memorized the details of each. She saw his glove next. It was loved and heavily used. The leather was well worked and soft to the touch. She could image him in the backyard looking very young, playing catch with his dad. But it was all of the photos that she wanted to really stare at. There were many, many framed photos of him. Each photo had him in a different pose that showed action: holding a bat over one shoulder, about to throw a ball, or down on one knee. His age changed in each photo from a very young boy barely able to hold a bat to what looked like ten years ago. Each photo had one thing in common: he had the biggest smile on his face; the same smile he wore now when doing his job.

The smell of Thanksgiving dinner was the only indication that the door behind her had opened. Turning towards it she found Danny's mom peeking in.

"Hello sweetheart, did you get some rest?" She approached where Lindsay was standing.

"Yeah, I guess I fell asleep on the way over."

"I told Danny to bring you up and let you sleep." She stopped next to where Lindsay was standing and glanced at the memories on the shelves in front of her. "He loves his baseball."

"And basketball, and football, and handball." Lindsay filled in.

"He was always an active child." They heard the front door open.

"There's more family; come down when you're ready." She left Lindsay behind to continue her exploring.

**

Lindsay descended the steps to find that the family had tripled in size. Danny cautiously came closer.

"Hey Montana, you rest any?" She was securely back in his arms again and looking around at all the people.

"Yeah, thanks. Who…where…" Her question got lost.

"Messer family Thanksgiving. Aunts, uncles, cousins. _I_ don't even know how I'm related to all these people." He looked around and saw everyone assembling for grace.

The blessing was said and the eating commenced. Lindsay was amazed at the patience his family had as they all filled their plates and found places at the kitchen table, dining room table, and anywhere else there was space. By the time that she wandered through the sea of family and had filled her plate at the kitchen counters, Danny was nowhere to be found. She looked around for him, checking all the tables and living room. When she found him, he was sitting on the steps to the second floor his plate already half empty.

"You hiding?" He scooted over to make room for her.

"No, I learned years ago, that if I sit here, I don't end up helping kids with their plates and don't get spilled on by passer bys." He explained his answer while gesturing to his family with his fork in hand.

"You're so sneaky." She dug into the plate of food, remembering how wonderful the leftovers were last year.

"Did ya miss goin' out to the parade this year?"

"Nope, not at all. It was nice to sit on the couch and laugh at all those who stood in the cold." She couldn't believe that she stood out there in that weather last year to watch the parade. "So you work tomorrow, so is there a movie marathon in our future on Saturday?"

"Boom." He drew her chin closer and they kissed a kiss of fun and love.

**

**

Friday morning when Danny got up to go into work, Lindsay got up to join the masses and hit some of the "black Friday" sales. She was out hunting for the perfect gift for Danny.

**

Danny arrived at a scene to hear from Stella that Hawkes had been arrested on charges of robbery and attempted murder of a bartender. He mouthed off to the chief and while standing out in front of the bar, Mac sent him off with Stella to another scene in Times Square.

**

Lindsay was having a great time going in and out of the stores up and down Broadway. She hadn't found many sales or anything for Danny, but gift buying for her parents was taken care of. She'd been in many New York souvenir stores, the Hershey store, and M&Ms world. She was stepping out of the MTV store when she spied yellow tape and a few marked police cars.

She hung around the area hopping to see someone she knew. The curly head of Stella came into view.

"Stella, what happened?"

Stella noticed her and stepped around all of the people at the scene. "Junkie died in one of the booths. However earlier this morning, Hawkes was arrested or murder."

Lindsay was silent. She was trying to figure out if she could have misheard Stella. She tried all possible combinations of the words she heard but nothing made sense. Danny walked into view and joined their conversation.

"Monroe, we have to stop running into each other at crime scenes." He kissed the side of her shocked face. There was a moment's pause. "Stella tell you what happened to Hawkes?"

"Yeah, I don't believe it."

"Neither do we. Mac's keeping an eye on it." Danny looked out over the city and adjusted his glasses.

A female Lindsay had never seen before stepped up. "The ME is here. They're ready to take the body. You guys done with him?"

"Yeah." Stella nodded.

"Hey Angell, come here." Danny requested. Lindsay got very confused. The man she was living with just called another woman over to him using an endearing nickname. What was more confusing was that she did it. She was walking back towards the trio. "Detective Jessica Angell, this is my girlfriend Lindsay Monroe."

Lindsay immediately felt embarrassed and blurted out a laugh. It startled everyone. She then started laughing at herself and the conclusion that she jumped to.

"It is so nice to meet you. I've heard your name mentioned a few time when he talked about his cases at home." She laughed at herself again. Angell and Stella then walked away to find the ME.

"What was that all about?" Danny asked once they had walked away.

"You called her Angell."

"Yeah, that's her name." He still was not catching on.

"I thought you meant it like 'sweetie' or 'honey.' She got very embarrassed at her admission to Danny. "So, what's up with Hawkes?"

"He was ID-ed by a bouncer for robbing and killing a bartender. We just got word that the bartender didn't make it."

"What evidence do they have?" Lindsay's detective mode was turning on.

"Eyewitness, money in his pocket, and that's all. Everything's back at the lab being processed."

She pulled him close and give him what support she could give him through contact. "If you need anything, call me. Keep me updated."

**

She was watching the news late that night. There was a story about a NYPD forensic scientist being charged with murder. She didn't want to listen to it so she found an old movie with Bing Crosby and Fred Astaire on another channel.

The next thing she knew, it was 10am and someone was unlocking the door.

"Danny?"

"Yeah, it's me. It's over." She could hear he was dragging in his voice. From the look of him, he was going to barely make it through the door. She knew the look; it was someone who had been put in a high stress situation and it took everything out of him, exhaustion was setting in.

"Hawkes' been released and the real guy is behind bars." He walked over and slumped against her as she hugged him. "I'll tell you all about it later. I want a shower and then I want to lie on the couch and watch a few movies with you."

She smoothed her hands over his face and he leaned into her touch.

"You got it cowboy. I'll be right here."

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_Thanks._


	33. Chapter 33

_A/N: Okay. I need to know what's missing in this. I feel like I have hit a dull spot and need some guidance. In the next few chapters Christmas is gotten ready for and celebrated, I touch on Silent Night in this chapter. No hits of Mac and Peyton in this chapter, but its coming. I am so excited about what I did with Obsession, and the important parts from Lying Game. That means some heavy stuff is coming as well as an extended time that Danny and Lindsay are away from each other. I am trying to figure out what to do with them apart. _

_Your reviews are very important. It lets me know what you like and what's missing. Please continue to do so.  
_

_If you have been following this since the beginning and have never reviewed just give me a shout out about why you are still with this. If you are thinking and dropping this story please let me know why. It only takes a few seconds. Thank you so much._

_And now on with the show (literally)._

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"What's your schedule over Christmas?" She asked one evening from her place at their desk.

"Don't know, but I won't have a lot of time off. You thinking about going home?"

She laughed at his use of the label 'home.' "No, I was thinking about going out to my parents."

"Same thing."

"No, it's not. This is home. Home is where you are and I just decided..." She turned sideways in the straight backed chair to face him on the couch. "..I want to stay here and have Christmas with you."

"Boom. We can decorate and everything. I usually don't get a tree. It's only been me and if I'm off, I go to Mom and Dad's. They decorate enough for the whole family."

"Christmas with you in the city. I like the sound of that"

"Better than Christmas in the country with you family."

"You are my family." Coming over to the couch where he sat she straddled his lap and kissed him soundly.

**

He was woken up in the middle of the night; Lindsay was thrashing around on her side of the bed. The sheets were tangled around her legs. She was rolling from side to side and trying to get away from something unseen.

"Who are you?" She whimpered and rolled around to face the other direction. "Why them?"

She screamed a silent scream and covered her ears, he decided to try and wake her up.

"Lindsay, baby, hey hon…com'on wake up." He shook her for a few minutes until the thrashing stopped. Her eyes opened and she realized where she was and she broke down.

"Oh, it was awful. I saw his face, I saw the murders happen as if I were standing in the corner and watching." Danny held her while she cried, feeling his heart break with every tear shed. "He'd shoot one of them and then look at me and then turn to shoot someone else." She sobbed uncontrollably. He held her and felt helpless. He could not think of a thing to do. He sat with her in his lap and rocked back and forth.

The sobs tapered off and she fell asleep, he was able to get out of bed and quietly get to the desk. Opening one of the drawers, he pulled out the file about her case. Pages were flipped and he made note of the information that he was looking for. He put everything back in its place and stealthily slipped back into bed beside Lindsay.

**

When Lindsay jumped in the shower the next morning, Danny went to the kitchen and started breakfast. He couldn't decide between omelets or pancakes, so he made a little of each. Fixing her a plate, he poured a cup of coffee for himself and waited.

"Wow…what's this all about?" She seemed really impressed by the spread in front of her.

"How d'ya sleep last night?" He decided to start slow and watched her face.

"Fine." She couldn't have been less convincing.

"So after the nightmare, you were good?" He was still watching her for clues.

"Yeah." The fingers in her lap became very interesting. Danny braced himself up on the edge of the counter.

"Linds, you said something after you woke up. You said that you saw his face. When you fell back asleep I looked through the case. There's no description of a suspect in the file. Do you remember what you saw in your dream?" She nodded still looking at her fingers. "Do you think that it was the guy who did this?" She nodded again. "Would you be willing to make it an official part of the investigation?" He saw another nod. "Adding a description and a sketch of the guy is another step closer to solving this case." He tried to reassure her. "Now, eat up and get going; you're going to be late for school." He watched as she shoved the food around her plate until the very last minute before she left. Cleaning up, he saw that she didn't eat a single thing.

**

Danny checked with Mac before going home to see if Lindsay had been in that day. She hadn't. He asked Mac everyday for a week if she had come in to work with the sketch artist and always got a negative answer. And the nightmares were also getting worse.

**

He was digging in the bottom of the closet when she came home and through the door a week after the nightmares began.

"Lindsay, that you?" It was muted and he had his rear hanging in the air while he searched for something. She couldn't help but to bump into him knocking him off balance and into the closet.

"Ow." He said when his head hit the back wall.

"No, that was more like 'boom.' What are you looking for?"

"My ice skates." Of all the things he could have been searching for she never would have guessed that.

"Why?"

"MacKinsey Wade was murdered."

"And you need your skates for what?" Still trying to get the whole story.

"Her friend Krista is competing tonight and then there is an open skate afterwards. I was hoping you'd come out with me tonight and we'd go for a skate." Something in the closet shifted. "Boom, found 'em." He crawled out of the small area. "Stella and Hawkes are going to be there too."

**

The routines were beautiful. Lindsay watched the skaters like a little girl watching a ballet. They were graceful, elegant, and smooth. Danny noticed that Lindsay was at ease; maybe for the first time in a week she would sleep that night. She was locked onto the ice dancing that was going on in front of her. Danny slid his arm low around her back and eased her closer in the bleacher seats and there was no resistance to her cuddling into his side.

Lindsay could not wait to get out onto the ice and experience what the girls skating at that moment were doing. She wanted to glide and feel the freedom of flying; that's what she equated it to. Arms spread out wide, wind in her face from the speed and smooth ice under her skates. She hadn't had that feeling since she was in college.

Krista took to the ice for her last skate and Danny pointed her out.

"This is the best friend of the girl who was killed. She's been a really big help with the investigation." Lindsay sat up a little bit taller and paid closer attention to her form and style. The piece that she chose to skate to was beautiful and very appropriate for what had been going on in her life.

She caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Two women sat side by side further down the way, closer to the ice. One of the women held the other while the other cried. Lindsay nudged Danny's arm to get his attention.

"Who are those two women?"

Danny followed her site line. "That's Krista's mom and the one who's crying is MacKinsey's mom."

Lindsay watched the two women. Her attention was now drawn more to the two women and their grief than to the skating. When the music stopped and Krista finished her final pose, she skated over to the two women and hugged KacKinsey's mom, which started a new wave of anguish. Krista exited the ice and MacKinsey's mom was inconsolable.

Lindsay became uncomfortable. "I need the keys." She held a hand out to Danny.

He started digging in his pocket. "What?" He was confused.

"I can't be here." She was standing by now. He put the keys in her hand and she left. Danny was about to follow, but Stella put a hand on his shoulder.

"I got it."

Stella followed her out to the parking lot and found her leaning against the hood mumbling. "Why did I survive? Why was I the only one?"

"Lindsay?"

She looked up to see Stella coming closer and wiped her tear streaked cheeks.

"What were you just saying? You said you were the only one?" It was said as a question.

"I guess I owe you an explanation." Lindsay accepted a tissue that Stella offered and wiped her eyes. "I survived a crime…" Lindsay struggled to find the words. "a very…a terrible crime." That night replayed once again behind her eyes, as it had many times in the last week. "Friends of mine…were killed." Her arms came together and crossing in front of her chest and she held onto herself tightly. Stella's heart broke for the woman standing in front of her. "I could use a friend here with this Stell."

"You got one kiddo." Stella wrapped Lindsay up in her arms and held her close.

"Why did you have to get out of there?"

"I don't do well with mothers who are grieving."

**

Danny waited an agonizing fifteen minutes before heading out to the truck with Hawkes. They watched the skaters on the ice during some of the open skate, hoping that Stella would be able to get Lindsay back into the arena. Hawkes followed him out to the parking lot. Danny didn't know if he would need a ride home or not.

When he spotted Lindsay, she was folded into Stella's arms. He mouthed the words "She okay?" and indicated to Lindsay and Stella gave him a short nod.

"Your knight in shining armor is here." The younger woman turned to see Danny. "Go home. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning."

To answer the questioning look on Danny's face Lindsay filled in. "I'm meeting Stella in the morning to go and see the sketch artist." The two shared a smile before they all headed home.

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_A/N: Thank you so much for coming all this way with me. From the time line of season 3 you know what's coming in the near future._


	34. Chapter 34

_Christmastime is here...well in the story it is at least. I am so excited about this chapter and the next few. Share the Christmas joy with me and send me presents in the way of reviews. Come on I love opened them up._

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It had not gone unnoticed to Danny that half of December was passed or that Christmas was right around the corner. After Lindsay met Stella to do the sketch Lindsay's gloom lifted. She started humming Christmas carols in the shower, stock piling decorations around the apartment and flirting with Danny again with no effort.

He was working at his desk with a new e-mail showed up. Clicking on it immediately, since it was from Lindsay, he read the short message "click on me." So he clicked on the words.

Media Player opened and a video started. Lindsay's entire class stood in the stairwell at the school and started to speak and wave their arms dramatically.

"Detective Messer, we would like to know if you would join us tonight at the Giants game." They froze in position just as Lindsay did a year ago in from of the Garden with her arms spread out wide.

She stepped in front of the camera. "Hi Detective Messer." She gave him a wink. "Your ticket will arrive shortly."

As if on cue, Flack walked in and dropped and envelope on his desk. "Linds asked me to drop this off."

She started talking again. "Flack has it. He was invited to come along also with strict instructions to get you there on time this year. See you later." She blew the camera a kiss. The kids behind her giggled and she rolled her eyes for the camera before the message ended.

**

They were late, much later than Danny had been the year before. His excuse when they finally showed up was that Flack had to go home and change.

Lindsay looked at the ensemble that Flack had put together. "You are such a woman when it comes to clothes." She told him.

Lindsay did her teaching bit. Flack hung on every word as if he were formulating a plan to take over the world with what he learned. They then sat back to watch the rest of the game.

In the middle of the 4th quarter something happened that made Lindsay giddy.

It started to snow.

It had already snowed a few times this year, but she had been inside when it happened.

The lingering families packed up and left. Flack and Danny looked so cold, but Lindsay sat in the middle of their empty section catching snowflakes in the palm of her hand. It stuck to her hair, shoulders, and eye lashes. She giggled. Danny thought she looked so beautiful.

In the parking lot, Lindsay walked ahead of the guys. Her head was down and she scooted her feet along to make tracks in the snow. She looked at the hoods of the cars that she was passing. The snow was piling up so nice and clean. She looked again at all the snow piling up. The she got an idea..an awful idea…Lindsay got a wonderful, awful idea. Lindsay decided she was thinking like the Grinch.

Slowly taking her hands out of her pockets, she swiped some of the snow off the hood of the nearest car and formed a perfect ball in front of her. The guys were still talking about something, so they had not noticed her intent. She then turned, took quick aim and threw.

The perfect snowball hit Danny square in the middle of the chest; surprising both him and Flack. Both of the guys looked up at her. She was already turned back around and making more tracks in the snow with her feet, hands back in her pockets.

"Oh, Montana, not a smart move." He quickly removed the snow from the front of him. Flack went a few rows over to stay away from the fight that was sure to happen, but kept moving towards the car. He watched as the other two cleared snow from every car hood between them and department issue truck, form snowballs, and hurl them at each other.

They hit and got hit on every part of their bodies. They used the parking lot as their own battle field. She nailed him with every shot.

Lindsay and Danny reached the truck and each cleared half of the hood for one more snowball each. They eyeballed each other, daring the other to take their shot. Lindsay worked the snow in her hands into the perfect sphere, her stare piercing him. He tossed his snowball from hand to hand, staring right back.

Flack approached, seeing that the fight was about over and they could go home. Lindsay saw him out of the corner of her eye and smiled an evil smile in Danny's direction. He caught on to what he was she was thinking. He counting off silently and bowed his head with each number, "one…two…three." Both turned and threw their projectile and hit Flack hard in the chest taking him by complete surprise.

He quickly looked around for anything to throw back at them, but they had pretty much cleared the lot of snow. "I will get you back." He brushed the snow off before it melted and chilled him.

**

**

Danny would not leave. He was supposed to be gone by now, but he just would not leave. Lindsay stood in the kitchen fuming about him taking his sweet time to get his stuff together and get out of the apartment. He was supposed to go Christmas shopping, but he couldn't move fast enough. Lindsay had plans and he couldn't be here for them to happen.

They'd been to the Giants game a few days earlier and Lindsay was now on Christmas Break, but she couldn't do what she wanted to do because he was around. She was pacing in the kitchen watching him eat his cereal and read the news paper at his own leisurely pace.

When he made the announcement that he was finally leaving, she rushed to the door and held it open for him, kissed him sweetly on the cheek and even called him sweetheart as she tried to close the door and lock him out.

"What's the rush?"

"I have Christmas things to do, now go." She kissed him one more time and closed the door. "Finally." She uttered and sent out a text.

Christmases in Montana were always grand affairs with music, food, family, presents, cookies, candy, warm houses, and snow. This was her first Christmas in the apartment together and she wanted to make it special.

A knock on the door officially started the work that needed to be done.

**

"I hate shopping at Christmas. Too many people, wanting to buy the perfect gift, but not knowing what it is. Not enough parking spaces, note enough time." Danny was ranting as he approached the fifth story of the day. Everyone was covered except Lindsay. On top of that, their friends at work were asking him for ideas of what to get her for the small gift exchange they were having. If he didn't have a clue what to get her, how could he tell everyone else?

Everything he looked at was not good enough or just not right. He held the door for a woman who was coming out of the store that he was about to go in. Something caught his eye and he got the most wonderfully perfect idea for her gift. As the woman passed, he greeted her with the most Merriest of Christmases that he could come up with and he went back to the truck humming 'jingle bells.'

**

Weighed down by the gifts he'd purchased, he hummed 'It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas' as he punched the button for his floor in the elevator in their building. He would have sung the song but he didn't know all the words.

The elevator doors opened and he hurried down the hall. Through their door, as he dug in his pockets for his keys, he could hear the melodious voice of Bing Crosby crooning about a white Christmas and he hummed along. The humming came to a halt when the door swung open and his eyes scanned the apartment.

Paper chains were draped on the walls. Two stockings hung over the ancient radiator, a plate full of frosted cookies sat on the counter, and twinkle lights lit up every corner of the apartment. His eyes did one more sweep of the apartment. His eyes came to rest on a giant tree tucked around the corner fully decorated with lights, ropes of garland, ornaments and presents already wrapped underneath. He rechecked the number on the door to make sure he had the correct apartment.

A buzzer in the kitchen went off and Lindsay appeared from the bedroom and crossed in front of him to the kitchen. She made no indication that she saw him standing there. The heavenly aroma of freshly baked cookies doubled in the air when she opened the oven and took out another batch of sugar cookies. When she turned to set the pan down, that's when the presence of another person was noticed.

"How long have you been home?" A great big holiday smile graced her lips.

"Few minutes. You've been busy today."

She looked around at her Christmas wonderland. "Yeah, some of Santa's helpers stopped by for a while."

"One of them must have been huge to get that tree in here." The tree was large, it was full and it was fully decorated from top to bottom. That meant someone else was here to help her reach the height of the tree.

"That's elf's name was Flack and a little elf named Ruben made these paper chain with me while we watched a marathon of Christmas cartoons. I only took a break to take cookies out of the oven." She walked up to him and stuff one into his open mouth. "You got anything in there for me?"

Danny took a bite out of the cookie. "Yes, but you have to wait for Christmas." He gave her a cookie kiss and passed her. His gifts were placed under the tree under the watchful eye of his girlfriend. She tried to peek over his shoulder as he squatted down. He blocked her view with her body, but lost his balance and fell sideways near the tree.

"Smooth Messer." She tried to get up from her position, but he caught her ankle and she lost her balance and sprawled out next to him.

"Smooth Montana."

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_What coming soon: Christmas, my version of Obsession (it almost wrote itself), and the rest of season three. I have a had a great time writing this so thank you for reading and reviewing._


	35. Chapter 35

_A/N: I am going to be doing some reconstruction of the beginning so if the chapter numbers go all wonky, that's why. Enjoy a little Christmas fluff and let me know what you think. I have family in town and it's my middle son's fifth birthday today. I wanted to get this chapter up early. Enjoy_.

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It was Christmas morning and a new blanket of snow covered everything. Lindsay woke early with a ball of excitement in her belly. She wanted to open presents, eat breakfast and watch the Disney parade; but not in that order. The lab family was coming over for brunch and then they were going to his parents' place later in the afternoon for supper. She got up out of bed and went to the kitchen.

**

Danny's dreamland was shattered when Grandma got run over by a reindeer. Slowly his senses started working and he heard novelty Christmas carols coming from the other room. Grandma was done getting run over and now some poor child was whining about getting nuttin' for Christmas. Danny was partial to the some about wanting a hippo for Christmas and wanting his two front teeth but not getting nuttin'.

Once his ears were fully awake, his nose soon followed. He started picking up the wakeful aroma of coffee. Not any mocha, French roast, vanilla garbage. Straight up coffee, the stuff that kicked you in the butt and got you moving in the morning. It was the scent that left him floating towards the coffee pot until he got that first taste in the morning.

He was pulling a shirt over his head and rubbing the sleep from his eyes when he left their bedroom. The first thing his eyes saw was Lindsay in a pair of sweats and his NYPD hoodie. He'd seen her in all stages of dress and undress, but there was nothing better (when she had to wear clothes) than her wearing something of his. It was the way she wore it, that it was his and the fact that she eventually had to take it off to give it back.

He walked up behind her at the counter he slid his hands from her shoulders, down her back, around her hips and across her abdomen. She leaned back into his chest and she felt so good against him. She tilted her head back to look up at him. Her lips dropped a kiss on his jaw. It was like silk against fine sand paper, but neither seemed to mind.

"Good Morning Christmas Cowboy." The words slipped from the lips that had just kissed him so sweetly.

"Mmm. Merry Christmas." She was so warm in his arms.

"You ready to open presents?" The grip around her tightened like a vice.

"I have the best present right here. When can I open it?"

"Later. We have people coming in a bit for food and presents." A cup of coffee was poured and put into one of his hands before she walked away.

That first cup of coffee in the morning was like starting an engine for him. A car wouldn't start without a key; Danny Messer did not function until that first cup. It didn't matter who made it or where it came from, it just had to be strong and hot. Lindsay couldn't stand how strong he liked it. It reminded her of the Garfield comic strip where a hand came out of Garfield's coffee and slapped him in the face. But there was something jarring about hot strong coffee that got him going in the morning. Bringing his cup to his lips, he first inhaled and then took his first taste and went to follow Lindsay.

"What is it with you and parades?" He found her on the couch with a remote in hand and Mickey Mouse coming down Main Street USA at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida.

"I love parades, but this one is my favorite. Montana is under many feet of snow right now. We watched this every year back home and wondered what it would be like in the sunshine and warm temperatures at Christmas." She went back to watching and ignored the comments he made every five minutes.

**

Wrapping paper littered the floor and there was only one present to be opened. It was tucked away inside the tree. Lindsay had saved it and its counterpart for last. Everyone watched as Lindsay went hunting through the tree.

Danny and Lindsay's apartment as the gathering place for their family around noon on Christmas Day. Stella and Flack arrived together, earning comments about how close they were. Peyton arrived next followed moments later by Mac. Hawkes rolled in and Adam showed last. The only two people who hadn't been able to come were Sid and Angell. They had family in the New York who were having celebrations.

Lindsay found what she was looking for and handed it to Danny. He looked at his gift carefully. It was a standard business sized envelope with his name written on the front. Nothing was unusual about it other than it was not a package with a big bow. All eyes were on him as he ran his finger under the flap. Without removing the contents, he held it open to check it out.

Lindsay was so glad that she had witnesses in the room.

"How…who…wha…where?" Was all he could come up with.

"Someone write this date down. Danny Messer cannot think of a thing to say." Stella quipped.

"Danno, what'd she getch'ya?" Flack tried to peer around to see.

Carefully he removed the contents and fanned them out for all to see. There were ten tickets to various sporting events. He double checked to make sure he was seeing this correctly.

"Flack what I have here are two tickets to a Nicks game, Rangers game, vouchers for two tickets to a Gaints game next season, two minor league ball game tickets and two tickets to a Yankees game."

Lindsay corrected him. "Not just any Yankee game. Opening day on field level."

Danny looked back at the tickets and reread all the details on all the tickets and then back at her questioningly.

"I have connections." She hugged him from behind his chair. "Plus I gave Mac all the dates and he promised not to put you on the schedule."

Danny looked to Mac for confirmation and got it.

"Mess, now you have to figure out who you're takin to all the games. I would like to make myself available for the Rangers game."

Lindsay once again stepped in. "Flack I have it on good authority that you are not available for the Rangers game, or any of the games really, except for the Yankee game." She handed him an envelope much like Danny's. "I have connections, but they are not that good." Flack opened his gift to find all the same tickets, minus the season opener.

Danny and Flack high fived and in two seconds flat became two little boys talking about sports and predictions for the coming year.

**

Christmas Dinner at Danny's parents was much like Thanksgiving. There was the same amount of food, love, and sporting events on TV. The major difference was that it was just the four of them.

Lindsay was helping his mom clean up a bit in the kitchen before tackling the presents under the tree.

"Lindsay, your bracelet is beautiful, have you been collecting charms for a while?"

The younger woman noticed that her bracelet was low on her wrist and gleaming. "No, just about four hours." She had to laugh at the other woman in the kitchen and the clueless expression on her face. "The bracelet was a gift from Danny. He also gave me the apple charm." She spun the silver charms around her wrist until she found a small apple with 'best teacher' written on it. "Then Danny must have shared with everyone what he was giving me because I got this NYPD shield from Mac, the Christmas tree from Stella, "NYC" from Sid, Adam gave me the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty came from Hawkes. Flack gave me the pool table because it we met during a game of pool. Danny also gave me the states of Montana and New York. My parents sent me the diploma and the American flag." She listed off the charms as she spun the bracelet and relived opening each one.

"Wow." His mom took Lindsay's arm and turned the bracelet around. "It sure is beautiful."

"Yeah, I love it."

**

Lindsay lay on her back, head cradled in Danny's lap on their couch long after they got home from Christmas dinner. He was flipping between Bad Santa and a basketball game. She was still spinning her bracelet around on her wrist and looking once again at it.

"Your mom had me totally fooled."

"What was that?" He took his eyes off of the TV and down at her.

"Your mom, she asked about my bracelet while we were cleaning up after dinner. Before we opened presents, she asked me if I'd had it for a while. I talked to her all about the charms and everything. Little did I know, she had two charms for me." She found the two newest additions: "ABC" with an apple on top and a domed charm with 'family' engraved. "Detective Messer, you did good. I love my gift. Thank you."

"I did good?" There was mischief in his eyes, she could see it. "Did I do really good?" His feet came off of the coffee table and the remote was set down. "'Cause if I did really good, I should get something."

"You mean like tickets to a lot of different sporting events…wait you already have those. I gave them to you. I think we've had a very good Christmas." He slipped off the couch and knelt down beside her.

"Merry Christmas Lindsay."

Her heart melted. "Merry Christmas Danny." She brought him to her lips with a well placed hand on the back of his head. Her fingers wove through his hair and held his face to hers.

The only thing she wore to bed that night was her new silver charm bracelet.

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_Review review review. They somehow make me want to write more._


	36. Chapter 36

_I watched yesterday, starting around 3:15 until about 6:30 as a new reader picked up the story and read each chapter and reviewed each. He/she/it/they methodically read and send me a short message. I just wanted to say thank you for each review, mjels, I appreciate them._

_At the end of this chapter there is a table of contents for the whole story so far. I went looking for a piece of information and couldn't remember where I put it so I am adding a table of contents for Chapters 1-36 at the end of this chapter._

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There was only so much daytime TV she could watch. Women sitting on couches listening to others' problems, oddities, and dramas were not her thing. There were only so many times she could do the laundry. She'd washed Danny's smell out of everything and had fluffed the towels three times already. And only so many times that she could clean the kitchen. If she scrubbed the counter one more time, a hole would form. There was only so much school work for her to do.

The joy of Christmas was over. The decorations were down. The twinkle lights no longer twinkled and the carols no long sang. The apartment no longer was thick with the smell of cookies or pine. The walls were back to normal.

The pristine white snow that fell after Christmas was no longer white. It was dirty and slushy. The exhaust from the cars in the street had turned it gray and dingy. The crisp clear days in late December had given way to blah brisk days of early January.

If was official, Lindsay was coming down with the winter blahs. She was restless and wanted school to start again. She spent most of her time at home alone wandering aimlessly. It was too yucky to go anywhere and Danny was working long hours.

The sun did not shine. It was too wet to play. So she sat in the house, all the cold, cold, wet days. First she was channeling the Grinch and now the Cat in the hat. She had to do something.

**

A big pot of chili was simmering on the stove. Lindsay worked all afternoon browning the meat, chopping the onion, stirring and keeping an eye on things. On the counter there was cheese, crackers, and Fritos. In the oven were French fries and potatoes. Danny called to announce that he was coming home and she told him to grab as many people as he could on the way. There was plenty of food waiting.

**

Her spirits were somewhat lifted when everyone left.

"What got into you today?" The worked as one to clean up the kitchen.

"I was bored. I had to find something to do today. Cooking usually helps. Tomorrow I'll stick the leftovers in the break room fridge."

He froze. "Why would you stick them in the break room?"

"I'm going to work with you. If I have to sit around this apartment one more day, I'll go nuts."

Danny still looked at her oddly. "Plus I want to talk to Mac about my case." Danny eased a bit. "Didn't you know it was take your girlfriend to work day?" She patted the side of his cheek and finished working on dishes.

**

If felt odd having Lindsay at work at the beginning of his shift. She'd come and go throughout the day or she'd hang around at the end, but never had he stepped off the elevator, kissed her goodbye and then headed off to the office. It was just weird.

"Bringing the wifey to work, that's a new one for me." Flack stood at the door of the office and gave his friend the hardest time he could.

"You wait. Just you wait. Some girl is going to have you wrapped around her finger, while she's wrapped around your…" His eyes went south. "Then you'll see."

"Yeah, but it will never spill over into work."

"Whatever."

**

"Hey Mac." Lindsay bounced into his office with her ever glow of sunshine.

"Lindsay, have a seat." She was all of sudden nervous. "Your sketch and the analysis of the DNA from the envelope were sent out to the Bozeman PD. There were no hits in any database on the DNA. The sketch circulated on the news and was featured in the newspapers. A lot of leads have come in and they are following them. One name kept coming up and they are trying to find whoever that is. If…when they find this guy you will be needed to pick him out of a line up, photo or in person. Then you will be needed for trial. Start wrapping your head around the idea that this could come to an end sometime soon."

She plopped down in Danny chair and started a list of things to do: 1) Talk to Mr. Dozier. 2) Talk to prosecutor at home. 3) Get lesson plans together. 4) Call Mom and Dad. 5) Tell everyone.

School would be starting again after the weekend. She could sit down with Mr. Dozier, her principal, then. She would have to tell him everything and secure time off and ensure that her job would be there when she got back. She imagined his face as the details were told to him; shock that his teacher was a survivor of this horrific thing and that she was going to need time off to go back and relive it.

A phone call to the prosecutor at home to update phone numbers, addresses, and other pertinent information would be good. When something happened, she wanted to know about it.

Her lesson plans were done almost until Spring Break. She just needed to pull everything together for a substitute: worksheets, videos, books from the library. She also needed to inform her kids that there was a possibility that she might be going away for a while.

Her list of phone calls grew when she came to the next item on her list. Her parents needed to know what all was happening and given a heads up about her coming home soon for the trial, if they ever got that far. It was time to let her parents know how close they were to catching someone and making him answer.

The last thing on her list she hated. No one other than Danny and Mac knew all the details. Stella knew that something had happened in her past, but not the whole story. If she just up and left town for the trial, everyone would want to know what was going on and it wasn't fair to Danny to leave him to answer all the questions. Questions would need to be answered and she could use all the friends she could get at this point.

**

It was the first day back to school and Lindsay was so excited to see all her kids. It was something to fill her time and thoughts. Her sit down with Mr. Dozier was after her last class.

She couldn't get those kids to settle down. They were all too busy talking about the holiday and their gifts. Lindsay gave up on her lesson and started letting the kids take turns telling about their holiday break. She was zoning out and not really paying attention until Bryce stood in front of the class.

He held something up in front of him and in the most proud and boastful voice he stated, "I got arrested."

She dropped her pen. "Bryce, what did you just say?"

"I got arrested."

Lindsay came around her lab table that doubled as her desk and looked to see what he was holding. It was a blown up copy of a mug shot.

"Bryce, tell me what happened."

"That guy who came to the Giants game, he locked me up."

"Detective Messer…Danny did this?" Lindsay was appalled that he would have done this. What was he thinking, he knew all her kids, and he would have recognized Bryce if he dealt with him.

"No, not your boyfriend, the other guy, the tall one."

**

Her mind was more on getting her hands on Detective Don Flack and finding out what really happened as she sat in front of her principal and explained what might be coming in her future if someone was arrested and she was needed in Montana.

He did not have many questions; he just wanted to know that she was okay and that he and the school staff would be there for whatever she needed.

Feeling a little lighter and ready to focus on her evening, she sent a text to Danny. "Bring Flack home for dinner. Stella too." She knew that they were all on the same shift. Stella might be needed if Lindsay did not like the answers that Flack gave her about Bryce. Danny and the other two would make it back to the apartment before she did with dinner, that's how she wanted it.

**

Lindsay purposefully made dinner conversation light and away from any topics dealing with police work. They dined over Chinese from their favorite restaurant. Her discussion that she would have with Flack kept rolling over and over in her brain.

Danny noticed Lindsay playing with her wine glass and tapering off her participation in the conversation. Her focus was on the level of liquid and how it moved when she shook her glass.

"Lindsay, you alright?"

"My kids wouldn't calm down today," she spoke clearly so that each word could be understood, "so I had them each share what they did over Christmas Break." Lindsay hadn't told Danny any of this so he was listening closely. "They told me what they got for Christmas, about vacations they took and then Bryce got up in front of everyone. In front of him he held a copy of his mug shot and he very proudly told everyone that he got arrested during his holiday."

Stella barely stopped herself from spitting her wine across the table.

"Who?" Was Danny's question.

"Bryce." Flack's color drained as he listened. "He had a blown up black and white copy of his mug shot and everything." Lindsay finished staring at Don Flack.

"What was he arrested for?" Stella asked after recovering from her almost spitting incident.

"Murder." The way she said it brought all breathing in the room to a stop. Flack sat silent still.

"Okay," Stella started. "Nothing must have come from it; I mean he was back in class today."

Lindsay did not speak. She sat stock still and looked at icily stared at Flack causing the eyes of Danny to land on his best friend and then Stella's followed.

"Flack, why are we all staring at you?" Stella asked.

"Stella." Flack made the first sound in ten minutes. "You remember that dead guy in the apartment."

She tried to sort out the details. "Yeah, kidnapping of a woman that wasn't really a kidnapping, boyfriend killed her lover. A strange love triangle."

"Yeah, you remember who found the body?" Her curls shook along with her head. "I told you a couple of kids came into the three-five claiming that their friend's football may have killed a man."

"I remember, you then said that you locked them up for fun." She looked at Lindsay wide-eyed. "That was one of your students?"

Her head dipped dramatically.

"Linds, I had no idea. I am so sorry."

"Why are you sorry, you made his holiday. He knew it was you. He remembered you from the game."

"He didn't say anything?" Danny piped in.

"Obviously not." Stella answered.

"And Flack what did we learn from this?" Danny asked.

Don Flack formulated his response and thought long and hard. "Before locking up any kids again, ask if their teacher is Ms. Monroe." He smiled his smirk smile. She threw a napkin at him.

"No, how about don't lock up kids for fun anymore." Lindsay told him.

"Come on Linds, I got to have my fun somehow."

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Please review. Please please please please.

Table of contents.

Ch 01 - Danny Visits Lindsay's Classroom

Ch 02 - A Day in her class/He asks her out.

Ch 03 - _Zoo York_ 203 mentioned/Pool game

Ch 04 - _Corporate Wars 204/Dances with the Fishes 205/Young Blood 206_ mentioned

Ch 05 - Basketball Date

Ch 06 - Godzilla and Dinner - _Manhattan Manhunt 207/Bad Beat 208 mentioned_

Ch 07 - Motorcycle Ride

Ch 08 - Thanksgiving - _City of the Dolls 209 mentioned_

Ch 09 - Giants Game - _Trapped 211 _mentioned

Ch 10 - Christmas/Airport

Ch 11 - _Stuck on You 214_ mentioned

Ch 12 - Valentine's Day

Ch 13 - _Fare Game 215/Cool Hunter 216 _mentioned

Ch 14 - Saturday at his place

Ch 15 - Lindsay's Parent's Visit

Ch 16 - Massege

Ch 17 - _Live or Let Die 218/Supermen 219 _Mentioned

Ch 18 - _Run Silent, Run Deep 220_ Mentioned

Ch 19 - _All Access 221_ Mentioned

Ch 20 - _Stealing Home 222/Heroes 223 Mentioned_

Ch 21 - _Charge of this Post 224 Mentioned_

Ch 22 - Lindsay visits hospital/Zoo Trip

Ch 23 - Last day of School/Pool game #2

Ch 24 - Move in Together/Danny vacation

Ch 25 - Graduation

Ch 26 - SEASON 3 - _People with Money 301 mentioned_- Lindsay drops her file off with Mac

Ch 27 - _Not what it looks like 302 mentioned_

Ch 28 - _Love Run Cold 303/Hung out to Dry 304 mentioned_

Ch 29 - Lindsay tells Danny about her past

Ch 30 - _Oedipus Hex 305/Nurder Sings the Blues307 Mentioned_

Ch 31 - Lindsay's Fall Walk - _Consequences 308/And Here's to You, Mrs. Azreal 309 mentioned_

Ch 32 - Thanksgiving - _Raising Shane 311 mentioned_

Ch 33 - Nightmares - _Silent Night 312 mentioned_

Ch 34 - Giants game/Snow fun/Christmas decorations

Ch 35 - Christmas

Ch 36 - _Obsession 313 mentioned_


	37. Chapter 37

_Thank you for all the wonderful reviews. Here ya go. Please let me know if I handled it well...You'll see what I mean._

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"Okay, okay. I got one." Lindsay quieted down the men at the table. "I was called out to a bizarre auto accident. Smoke was still coming from the tree truck that fell over onto a pickup truck. When the fire department extinguished the fire they found a body burned in the cab. So we have a man in a truck with a tree on top."

"Freak accident." Flack stated. "Tree fell as he was passing by."

"Behind a house?" She added to the details. "And why did the tree catch on fire."

"The car hit the tree and the tree fell on the truck." Hawkes stated.

"Physics says the tree should have fallen away if the truck hit it." Danny spoke his thought.

"And yet the truck was facing away from the base of the tree." Lindsay was still adding details.

"What?" Danny exclaimed.

She grabbed the pen out of Flack's jacket hanging off the back of his chair and doodled the crime scene on a napkin. Tree on top of truck, both on fire, truck facing away from base of tree, all behind a house. Everyone took a look at her drawing.

"And is this to scale." Seriousness tried to cover the sarcasm in Flack's voice.

Everyone looked and looked and looked. They could not come up with what the story was.

"Eyewitnesses?" Hawkes inquired.

"The victim offered to remove the tree for a friend. He borrowed a truck, tied the truck to the tree and floored it. His friend told us that the victim thought he could yank out the bottom of the tree and then it would fall away from the truck." She used the pepper to be the truck and her arm as the tree. She demonstrated what the victim thought would happen. "Kinda like in the cartoons. Instead, the uprooted tree pulled in the direction of the force." She demonstrated again using her props and toppled into the truck, crushing the cab and knocking out the victim, probably killing him. "The engine eventually overheated, lighting the grass and the truck on fire." She finished her story with one final thought. "And that's why they are called cartoons and not documentaries."

"You don't find that in the city." Danny told the rest of the table.

"We were called out to assist and explain another car accident." She sat up eager to tell another story. "I'll start with what the scene looked like." She pushed up her sleeves up. "Man under car next to tree, engine running, tree branches destroyed along with most of the tree."

All the men at the table were captivated by another Lindsay story from the country. "Larry had shared with his friends that his car was stuck in the mud in one of his fields. With no one available to help he decided to get the car out himself. From what we found at the scene…it appears he used a tool box to wedge down the accelerator and he went around to the back to push it out of the mud. At some point the car became unstuck and traveled across the field at upwards of 70 miles per hour. Deep tire marks indicated that it hit a small bump before landing in the top of a tree that was planted deep in a ravine between fields."

"The ME's report said a whole lot more. It stated that the man was standing upright when the tree gave out and the car fell on him and dislodged the toolbox on the accelerator at the same time. There was not a bone in his body that wasn't broken. There were a lot of compression fractures from standing up to becoming a pancake." She crossed her arms and sat back in her chair proud of herself again.

"They get stupid people in cars and we get crapcicles from airplanes and dead women in the men's room who are actually men." Flack spoke of his most current case with Stella and Hawkes.

Lindsay's phone rang before she could ask anymore about what Flack was talking about. Checking the caller ID, she excused herself.

"Lindsay Monroe." She answered as she walked out front onto the sidewalk.

"Ms. Monroe, its Robert Hardin with the Bozeman District Attorney's office. We have a man in custody that matches your description and we're running his DNA for comparison. We need you to come out and testify and ID him in court." She looked through the window at Danny, Flack and Hawkes. Flack and Hawkes were laughing at something and Danny was looking back at her.

"Hey guys, I'm gonna go and catch up with Linds. If we don't come back, just know that we probably went on home." This comment earned a knowing look from both men. Flack and Hawkes followed him out with their eyes to where Lindsay was standing. A very intense conversation was going on with whoever she was on the phone. When it was snapped shut the intense conversation continued between Danny and Lindsay. The two men who were left behind watched Lindsay break down and Danny hold her close. The two men shared a questioning look and wondered if the other knew what was going on. When they turned back to the window Danny and Lindsay were gone.

**

Quietly Mac's team assembled in the conference room the next day. Flack, Angell, Sid and Peyton also were paged to be there. Mac's office would not hold them all and the conference room had enough chairs. It was an odd occurrence to have everyone together like this.

Danny, Lindsay and Mac stood in a front corner whispering when Flack entered the room. Mac noticed the arrival and took a seat near Peyton. Lindsay saw his hand find hers under the table.

Sid observed the somber postures of the only two people left standing. Lindsay was playing with Danny's fingers that were laced with hers.

"Something wrong?" He looked between Danny and Lindsay. She couldn't find her voice so Danny began.

"Lindsay's gonna take off for a little while." It pained him to say these words. He couldn't fathom what it would be like for her not to be in New York. They talked and she cried for a long time the night before. Emotions about the case finally and possibly coming to an end bubbled to the surface while she was getting ready for bed. A choked sob came out and he ran from the living room to be with her. Her tears for the resolution started his tears for her. He squeezed her hand and saw that she was near tears again.

"When?" Don Flack asked totally confused.

"I leave tomorrow for Montana." A soft murmur went through the group. Lindsay looked at Danny for support and reassurance. "A couple months ago I received a package about a case I was involved in. Mac processed it and sent some new evidence that he found back out the Montana. Last night I got a call from the Bozeman Prosecutor's office. They apprehended a suspect who was wanted in the multiple homicides I worked from ten years ago. Four girls…They were friends. I was the only witness." Her shoes became the most interesting in the room because that is what she was staring at.

"And the only survivor as I remember." Stella added from their conversation after the skating competition. All heads turned her way in disbelief that she knew something about this. She came under the hurtful start of Don Flack. Lindsay's shoes were still more interesting than anything else so Danny spoke again.

"They want her to testify." He pulled on her hand to make sure she was still with them.

Her voice was so distant when she spoke again finally. "I still see their faces, my friends' faces." The flash of them around the table at the diner went through her imagination. "The mother's faces. I don't know what I'm more scared of, standing in front of the monster who did this." She flinched at the memory of his face. "or seeing those faces." She played with Danny's fingers that were still interlaced with hers again. You could hear a pin drop in that room it was so quiet.

Stella rose from her seat. "Take care of yourself kiddo." The hug was so tight; Lindsay was caught off guard.

"Thanks."

Mac was next. "You're tough Lindsay. You'll pull through this."

Each person hugged her and gave her their words of encouragement.

**

Flack caught up with Stella in the hallway. "Hey, you knew about all this?"

Her hands came together in front of her. "No, not all the details. I knew there was something. I don't know who knew what. But what matters right now is we need to help her out in any way we can." He knew the tone well. That was all she had to say on the subject and there was no arguing with her.

**

"Mac, how long has this been going on?" Peyton stood in his office.

"Lindsay brought me the case in the fall and I've been quietly looking it over."

"Do you think they have the right guy in custody?" Peyton cocked her head to one side and looked into his eyes.

"I think that they have someone who has a lot of questions to answer and a lot of years to make up for."

**

The car ride was quiet, he was giving her a quick ride home out of professional courtesy, before going to a scene. Her place just happened to be on the way to the call.

"Flack, I don't know Lindsay that well, but this seemed to come out of the blue."

"No kidding, today's the first I've heard about it. She got a serious phone call last night while we were at Sullivan's and she and Danny took off."

"How long have they been together?"

Flack laughed out loud at Angell's question and proceeded to tell her the story of Danny and Lindsay.

**

They said good bye in the apartment the next day. Danny had been called in because of new evidence that had come up in his case. She still had a few hours before she had to be at the airport.

He was holding on tight. "Danny you have to go Mac's waiting." But she was holding on just as tight.

"You call me, day or night if you need anything…anything." He held her face in his hand and memorized each feature one more time.

"I got you on speed dial Cowboy."

Kisses and loving words were passed. He regretfully stepped back and left the apartment.

Lindsay was left with nothing to do. She looked around the home she and Danny made for themselves. She'd miss their jumble of shoes by the door. She'd miss the bowl on the counter where their keys, phones and everything else landed at the end of the day. She'd miss how the two of them had really become one.

She couldn't stand waiting in their empty home any longer. She called a cab and made her way to the lobby. She had a short note for him that she was going to slide into their mailbox for him. Seeing the taxi pull up, her plans for the note changed.

**

"Hey, I thought you'd left. You okay?" Hawkes questioned when Lindsay showed up at the lab and in the office.

"Yeah, uh." She looked around for any sign of Danny. "Tying up some loose ends. Have you seen Danny?"

"Yeah, he's out in the field."

She held up a card for him to see. "Could you, uh, make sure that he gets this?"

"That's how you're telling him you're leaving." She gave him a look that screamed 'are you kidding, you know better.' The said goodbye many ways in the last twelve hours. "A card?"

"It's not a big deal. I'll be back." She just didn't know when.

"At least call him. Give him a chance to say good-bye." He told her.

She thought back to the last couple of days. Ever since the phone call came in from Montana he'd been saying good-bye in his own way, and actions speak louder than words. He said good-bye once in the shower last night, twice in bed and then again that morning. He's said good-bye with his eyes, lips, hands and his…well, you know. Lindsay blushed and left the office and went back to her cab.

"Airport please." The driver started to pull away from the curb in front of the lab. Danny was crossing the street in front of the cab. "Could you wait a second?" Lindsay watched him, the perfect example of a New Yorker, her New Yorker. She saddened at the thought of being so far away from him.

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_Welcome aboard to all those who have just started reading. Let me know who you are._

_Let me know what you thought of this chapter. I am starting to hit a block with what to do with them while they are apart._

_Review Review Review._


	38. Chapter 38

_A/N at end._

She was going to face one of her biggest fears. The noise and the bustle of the people around her did not make her lose focus on what she was about to do.

The first time she was so nervous and anxious, she almost threw up. It was her first time up there; everything went wrong and she never wanted to do it again.

The second time was worse because she knew what was coming. She knew the procedure. She knew the feelings she would go through before it was over.

As she got more accustomed to being up there, she started figuring out tips and tricks:

Don't think about the event until right before

Remember the first few minutes are the worst.

Relax…you really have no choice.

Lindsay stood, shouldered her small carry-on bag, took a deep cleansing breath and boarded the plane. She really hated flying.

**

Danny trudged into the lab ready to analyze the substance that they found on the edge of the skateboard. He wanted to focus on anything other than the idea of going home to an empty apartment eventually.

Taking a sample of the material, he started to run it through the GCMS and grabbed his coffee cup while he waited. In the process of moving around, he knocked something on the floor.

He didn't know what it was until he had it in his hands. The plain white envelope had his name written on the front in her perfect educator handwriting. His fingertips brushed slowly over his name knowing that her hand had delicately written it. It was such a simple thing, but his stomach flipped and tightened at the sight of her script. It was unique to her. He enjoyed watching her write things out long hand; so many had lost the art of letter writing. It was all texting and e-mailing. Letters used to be little surprises in the mailbox and holiday staples. He was amazed how his name penned in her hand affected him.

Smiling at himself, he slid the flowery card out of the envelope and ignored anything that was written on the front and went straight to anything that she'd written inside.

"Dear Danny, I'm not good at long goodbyes. Or short ones for that matter. But Montana calls and the cows are heading home. MOO – see you soon. – Montana."

Again his stomach fluttered at her writing and he loved the message. What he couldn't figure out was the "MOO". Was she calling herself a cow? And she signed it 'Montana."

He was still wearing the biggest grin on his face when Mac walked in and asked about the case.

With card and envelope still in hand, he explained what was found. Mac's eyes followed his hand.

"Wait…what is that?" Mac pointed at the objects.

The smile that appeared on Danny's face would have lit up Times Square at midnight on New Year's Eve.

"It's a note from Linds. I have no idea how she got it up here." He shook his head and read the inside again. Mac snuck a peek and read the note and laughed.

"What?" Danny tried to throw as much of his attitude in that one simple word.

"She said MOO." Mac said.

"Yeah, so what?"

"Whenever Claire said 'MOO' she meant 'my one and only'."

Danny took another look inside the card t what she wrote to him. "My one and only."

**

The wheels finally hit the ground and she let out a breath she'd been holding since the fasten seatbelt light came back on. The flight attendant came on and gave the normal info about local time, weather and where to find information about connecting flights. She knew that her father and/or mother would be waiting in baggage claim, but beyond the doors of the airport, all the ghosts of her past were waiting to haunt her.

**

He finished his case, he worked with Stella on a few things, and he finished every piece of paperwork that was on his desk. When he started hanging out in the trace lab just to talk to people, Flack knew that he was avoiding going home.

"Hey, Mess, you done here?" He hung off the door handle and watched his friend.

"Yeah, you got something for me?" Danny jumped off the stool eagerly.

"Yeah, a choice. You can either come out and have a drink or let me take you home."

Danny cringed at the thought of going home.

"Drink it is, Danno. Let's go."

**

Country nights in winter were as quiet and cold as she remembered. There were no sirens, no traffic noises, nothing. When she looked out the window, there wasn't a light to see for miles.

Pulling out her phone, she hit speed dial.

He yelled, "Messer." There was a lot of noise and loud music. She didn't want to yell a conversation at him so she hung up and sent him a text. "Call me when you get home."

Flack stared at his buddy across the table. There was only a third of the liquid gone and Danny had stared at it for so long that he could probably do a quick chemical analysis on it. Flack watched Danny, he was motionless, but then something happened.

Danny's eyes got big, he started checking his pockets, and he pulled out his phone and yelled his name into it. Then he looked at it again and jumped out of his seat.

"Come on Flack, lights and sirens, take me home." He was out the door before Flack knew what hit him.

**

The window seat was her place to dream when she was growing up. She watched the seasons change, read 'Little Women' over and over, and now she was sitting here again dreaming of a guy. A guy she hadn't been without for over a year. She was empty inside and hollow without him near. She felt as silent and still as the landscape out the window.

Her phone alerted her to his call. "Hey cowboy."

The two words came out breathy and he could hear the smile in her voice. His heart soared at the sound. "How's it going out there?"

"It's going alright, but it's going to get busy. The trial has been sitting and waiting for so long. It'll go fast as soon as it starts."

He heard the distance in her voice that was more about where her mind was and not the thousands of miles between them.

"You holdin' up?" He asked

"Today, yes."

"Tomorrow?"

"I don't know."

**

To: DMesser, MTaylor, SBonasera, SHawkes, ARoss, SHammerback, DFlack, JAngell  
From: LMonroe  
Subject: 1-28-2007 Update

Hi New York,

Wanted to let you know what's going on here. I ID-ed the guy. It's a lot harder on the other end. As a cop, we stand with a victim at that window waiting patiently for them to look at each person's face. We stand there hoping that the right person is standing there; hoping that at some point we can make it right. But as the victim its much different. In each face you look for some mark, some flash of familiarity so that you're 100% sure that your have the right person, but you have to try and put each face at the crime and relive every moment…anyway I ID'ed the guy.

The DA had had this case ready for years and wants to fast track it. I could be out here for a while. I'm staying busy and can't wait to get back to Sullivan's for a drink.

--Lindsay.

Her mailboxes filled up with responses from everyone. They sent words of encouragement in their short notes back. Everyone wanted her back, but none more than Danny of course. His work and sleep were being affected. He tried to call her but her phone was off or out of range.

He sat down at his computer that night and looked at their family picture above the desk. Thinking about how close they all were, he started an e-mail to her.

**

Lindsay walked the well worn path down to the barn after the sun fell below the horizon. It was a path she knew like the back of her hand. A wind blew around the corner of the structure and she secured the jacket tighter around her shoulders. Inside the barn she would find a warmer retreat.

She turned on the small light inside that her father installed years and years ago. She took in the familiar surroundings. This was one of her childhood hangout. She spent hours brushing her horse and mucking the stalls. She looked up to the hay loft. The rickety ladder had long been replaced with steps; most of the animals' stalls had been removed. Her father's ranching days had been over for a while and then barn had become a storage shed. Yet, a few stalls remained at one end.

"Hey Stranger." Lindsay approached the last stall. Her horse came to the Dutch door and bars at the sound of her voice. There was nothing unique or different about the plain brown horse in the last stall other than it was hers. The two shared a moment of reconnection before she started speaking. "I'm home again. Same reasons." Lindsay caresses her best friend, looking for comfort. "I think this time, it will be done. All those days and night you had to listen to me cry and carry on about what happened. It may be coming to an end." She looked around the barn. "It's getting late, but I want to go for a ride before I go home." She must have said something wrong because the horse pulled away a little. "This isn't home anymore. I'm just here to finish some business and then I'm going home to New York." Sadness over came her, but she didn't know why.

**

She got back to her room and flipped open her computer for her daily rounds of e-mails. To her surprise there was a nice long e-mail from Danny.

To: LMonroe  
From: DMesser

Montana, did you know that Mac has a son? Well not really. It's Claire's son that she had before she met Mac. He and Mac are slowly forming this strange relationship.

I miss you. I want you home. I can't remember what I was like or what I did before you came into my life. I want to know how things are going. I want to ask how you are but that's always what we talk about and I'm sure that you need a break from trial and case talk so I don't know what else to talk about.

So, tell you what…give me a topic, ask me a question, start a conversation…

Before she could read to the end of the e-mail an IM box popped up.

(DMess): You come here often?

She laughed at him and his attempt at humor and the cheesy pick up line.

(DMess): If I said you had a beautiful body would you hold it against me?

She laughed again.

(DMess): Hey, I didn't know angels flew so low

(LMonr): Didn't I see you in GQ?

(DMess): I may not be a genie but I can make your dream come true.

(LMonr): Can I take a picture of you so I can show Santa just what I want for Christmas?

(DMess): Let's make like a fabric softener and snuggle

(LMonr): Did you fart? Because you just blew me away

Danny laughed out loud for a few minutes before he could type properly again.

(DMess): Nice one Monroe. How's my girl?

(LMonr): Better now, thanks to you.

(DMess): Just doing my job.

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_I have finally reached the point where what I write long hand is what I publish almost the next day. _

_I am writing feverishly to keep updating on a regular basis. However I am doing end of year assessments at school, please be patient. From the ideas that I have Valentine's Day and Heart of Glass will be a major focus of the next chapter. I am in the middle of writing and typing it._

_Please, please please let me know what you think and review._


	39. Chapter 39

_Mention of Some Burried Bones, Heart of Glass. Thank you for reading._

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(DMess): Why in the world would anyone pay $25000 for a purse?

The case and reasoning behind why a woman was robbing stores baffled him, but why anyone would pay the crazy amount for a handbag was way beyond him.

**

The question waited for her at the end of her day in her childhood room on her computer.

(LMonr): Why would anyone pay almost $5000 for a baseball with a dead guy's signature on it?

She was stunned to receive a quick response.

(DMess): Depends on who the dead guy was…

(LMonr): Depends on who designed the purse…

That's how they communicated: by however they could. Her cell phone didn't always get the best reception for calls. They sent e-mails and IMed throughout the day whenever they had time. E-mails were left for long updates and stories; IMs were used to banter back and forth. Her phone worked well in a few spots around town. She would walk through on and text messages and voice mails would pop up on her phone.

From her parents line she would try and call him each night on his cell. He would give her a few minutes or a few hours.

They would never discuss the case over the phone. The first thing he did was ask how she was. It was an opening each night for her to talk about the reason why she was in Montana, but she never took it. The last thing he did was tell her "I love you, I'm here for you. If you need me, I'm a phone call away."

**

"Hey baby, how ya doin'?" Danny muted the basketball game, threw the remote of the table and stretched out on the couch.

"Grumpy."

"Why Grumpy and not one of the other six dwarves?"

Lindsay was momentarily impressed with his knowledge of 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarves' but then remember why she was grumpy. "Because it's February 13th and I'm still here. I hoped, figured, expected to be home by Valentine's Day. I've been here for three weeks and I'm ready to come home."

Trust me, I'm ready for you to be home. Our bed has been way too big for just me. I had plans for us tomorrow."

"What kind of plans?" her grumpy mood started to dissolve.

"Flowers, chocolate, candles…those little candy hearts." With each word she perked up a bit.

"The ones with the phrases on them…I love those."

"Well all of my plans can wait for you to get home." Her gloomy mood started to return.

"It just makes me want to be there more."

"Soon enough."

**

The next day Lindsay's phone was always making noise. Text messages came in as she roamed around town.

"Cutie Pie"

"Be Mine"

"Kiss Me"

Those all came in at once when she walked through a hot spot. Lindsay recognized the words from the heart candies. She went to the store and bought a bag of the tiny candies to text him back with some of the other phrases.

Sitting at a table waiting for her lunch, Lindsay opened the bag of candy, spread the mover her paper placemat and started sorting them. She ate the ones that had phrases on them that Danny had used or just didn't make since for them. One by one she singled each heart out in the middle and took a picture of it. After each photo she ate the heart. Her lunch arrived just as she took the last photo. She ate the burger and fries quickly and left the restaurant and went walking. When another text message came in from Danny, "Hot Stuff," she froze and sent out one of the photos of the hearts, "Lover Boy."

Through the rest of the day whenever his plain text messages came in she froze and sent him one of her photos. She was about to head home for the day, when her phone chirped one more time. In the little tiny window of her phone, there was a picture of her students standing around a vase full of flowers and a banner above them. "Happy Valentine's Day Ms. Monroe."

It was the sweetest thing. She planned to go home, print out the picture and add it to her bulletin board of cards, letters and photos from her family in New York. She stared at that picture all the way home. She saw the personality of each of her student shining right through. She missed her kids about as much as everything else.

"Mom I'm hom…" But the greeting was halted. On counter in the kitchen was the same vase of red roses that was in her picture. She looked from one to the other, from her phone to the counter. Next to the flowers was an envelope. She recognized Danny's handwriting. Inside the envelope was the banner from the photo; each student had written a message. She unfolded the long banner over the kitchen table and looked over the entire length. Sprinkled over the banner were also messages from Mac and the folks at the lab. Carefully, she folded up and slid it back into the envelope. She would have it lamented when she got back to school New York.

(DMess): If being sexy were a crime, you'd be found guilty.

(DMess): Peyton and Mac are dating.

Those two messages were waiting on her computer. She was in the mood for a nice hot bath. She gathered her stuff, quickly typed back to Danny "I know," and headed down the hall.

**

He read her response and picked up the phone.

**

The warm water surrounded her. She played in the foamy bubbles that formed on her fingers. The long walk in the February weather left her cold and sore. The water was helping her relax.

She knew…she knew that he'd call. When she typed her response and sent it to him, she knew he'd call her, so when her phone started ringing she wasn't surprised. In the sexiest, breathiest voice she answered her phone.

"Hi baby. I love my flowers and the notes from everyone."

Any sarcastic, biting remarks that he had were forgotten and a fire started to burn at the sound of her voice.

"Mon-TAN-a. How is the most beautiful woman in the whole world?"

"Fine Messer. Thank you for going out to see my kids, I miss them." Her voice softened.

"They miss you too. So you knew about Mac and Peyton?"

"Yes detective, you just had to see the clues."

"Alright Detective Monroe, what did I miss?" He teased.

"Well, At Christmas, they showed up two minutes apart and then hovered around each other all day. Then when we told the whole team about my case, Mac took Peyton's hand under the table. How did you find out?"

"They came to a scene together and it was Mac's day off." Danny told her about how smooth Mac was when he told Danny that he was with Peyton He didn't tell her about how he stood there with his mouth hanging wide open is shock. He heard water slosh. "You doin' dishes?"

"Nope, I'm talking a hot bubble bath." That syrupy voice was back. He closed his eyes and was back at the scene from late last night, except the victim was Lindsay and she was very alive and swimming in a tub of bubbles and not rose petals. He remembered the comment he made to Peyton: "Beautiful woman plans a private party like this, you'd have to knock me unconscious and drag me out."

"Oh, Linds, I want to be there with you." It was huskily groaned out.

Very innocently she asked, "Why cowboy? Its just me here." She blew more of the bubbles off of her palm.

"I know…I know it's just you there. That's why I wanna be there because then it would be just you and me in that tub. I want to be there holding ya. I wanna be able to touch you."

She bent her knees to her chest. "Danny, I want that too and so much more and it will happen soon." She held the phone to her ear while she wrapped an arm around her bent knees.

"How soon?"

"The trial starts next week. The prosecutor thinks it might go for a week and then I can come home."

It was the first mention of her coming home. It hit him right in the heart and squeezed. It was a wonderful dream: having her back in New York, having her back in their apartment, back in his arms. There was a possible end in sight and he wanted to jump for joy and cry at the same time.

**

He stayed busy through the rest of the week and over the weekend. She called Sunday night to inform him that the trial was starting the next day.

"Hey!" Lindsay was way to perky.

He tried so hard to be up, but he hurt so much. "Hey." It was strained.

"What's wrong."

"You're good." He tried to stretch and failed when pain took over. "Yesterday I played ball for most of the afternoon with Flack. Then when Flack was all played out, I joined a few other games. I think I over did it."

"I've know you to do smarter things."

"Sympathy would be nice."

"Poor baby."

"Yeah, I feel the love. Thanks." She giggled at his sarcasm.

"Sympathy's over. I called to let you know that the case is definitely starting tomorrow. I was about to e-mail everyone and let them know."

"How long? When do you testify?" His goal was still to have her home.

"Maybe a week and I'll testify later in the week."

"Lindsay Monroe, I love you, I'm here for you. If you need me, I'm a phone call away."

**

To: NYFamily

From: LMonroe

Subject: 2-18-2007 Update

Hey guys,

Wanted to let you know that opening arguments are tomorrow. Everything is in place and is should be quick. I will probably update you as things happen.

--Lindsay

**

Again she was overwhelmed by the responses that filled her inbox.

Leaving them for later, she sent a quick goodnight to Danny and headed back out to the barn.

The landscape in front of her was so peaceful. She sat with her feet dangling out the loft door and looked over the snow covered fields. The full moon's light reflected off the unmarred snow. The vast wide open space made her feel so small. She felt like she was 17 again. She spent many hours in the barn since coming back, mostly talking to her horse.

It took her coming home and having to stay for an extended period of time to make her realize how much Montana was a part of her. She realized how much this case, her old job, and this place was what made up a lot of who she was. When the trial was over, the door would close on her past and open on her future.

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_The next chapter or two will deal with Sleight out of Hand. I will use a lot of the lines from the show with extra twists. Stay Tuned and review please._


	40. Chapter 40

_Happy Mother's Day. Please review. The numbers are down again and I am wondering if anyone is still out there. This is THAT chapter. It deals with part of Sleight Out of Hand._

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"Why is it you leave and the most bizarre things happen?" Danny's voice came through the phone loud and clear and crossed the miles to Lindsay's ear.

"Tell me about your case." Lindsay got comfortable and prepared to listen.

It'd become routine to discuss New York cases because it had nothing to do with her. It was a break to hear about something else. They still didn't speak of her case. He got updates almost daily through the e-mails.

She was relieved to hear about something other than the distances between bodies and how much blood was lost. She was tired of reliving it over and over, hearing the story retold with each piece of evidence introduced and with each witness. She hadn't even had her turn on the stand yet. A week had come and gone and the trial was still going on. She would have to wait until Monday at least.

"Hey, you listenin' to me?" She loved listening to him talk when he was slightly frustrated.

"Sorry, I zoned out for a minute. What did you say?"

"I asked if you wanted to hear about the giant flaming cigarette or Noah's Ark?" He sounded a little too excited about two stories.

"A giant flaming cigarette, did I hear you right?"

"Yeah, yeah." He rushed the initial answer. "Stella and Flack answered a call about a giant cigarette running through the streets on fire. When they got to the scene, it looked like it had been snuffed out. The evidence trail led to an anti-smoking campaign and then an environmentally friendly cigarette. But when it was all said and done, it turned out the vampire did it."

Maybe she zoned out again. "Did you say vampire?"

"Yeah, He was a costumed mascot and he was trying to get the giant flaming cigarette man to join a union."

"That's just strange." She thought about the whole thing. "That's just really strange. Did you say something about Noah's ark?"

"Yeah, but it started with Noah's house. The walls, they were covered in quotes from various texts about the end of the world. I tried to start processing, but Flack stopped me. He wanted to show me the victim."

"Why?"

"He was covered in thousands of dollars."

"Rules out robbery." She blurted.

"That's what I said." Great minds think alive. "So I tried to take photos of the vic, but Mac told me to save my film. He lead me to the back yard where he showed me Noah's Ark. We found animals and people inside. They'd been in there for five days."

"Wow, so who killed the guy under all the money?" This was playing out like a soap opera.

"Don't know yet. Bur according to everyone on the ark, the world ends on Sunday."

**

The world didn't end on Sunday, Lindsay didn't get to testify on Monday and the city was starting to go crazy with magic fever. Some guy named Luke Blade, like that's his real name, was coming in and was going to be putting on a show. The city was turned upside down with excitement. It was still a few days away and Danny already wanted him gone. He knew there would be crazy copy cats and side show, all trying to cash in on the magician's appearance.

**

Tuesday she didn't testify. She was beginning to think that this was going to go on forever. Wednesday she didn't testify, but over lunch the attorney slipped her a note stating that she would be on the stand Thursday.

**

Danny rounded the corner and was at the theater that Mac called him to. The bright display on his phone told him it was about to be a new day. It was almost midnight.

He knew a few of the details about the scene he was about to step into: young woman sawed in half on stage. Out of habit he checked the locks on the doors for tool marks before he went in and found Mac.

From the side door he walked through a corridor with old dusty props, ropes for curtains or scenary than then out onto the main stage. Mac was staring at the blood pattern on the floor.

"No signs of forced entry." Danny took a look around. "Wow, I gotta say, out of all the bodies, this is on the top ten twisted list."

"Yes, no ordinary slice of life." Mac looked to the younger man for the usual chuckle or even sarcastic reply but only saw a deep yawn that told Mac how tired and exhausted his friends really was. "You work around the clock last night?"

Danny started walking around the stage before he was allowed to stand still for too long and fell asleep. "Grand jury, search warrant hearing, a 4-12 that rolled onto midnight. I'm catching my 4th wind." He pushed his glasses up his nose to help his already tired eyes as much as they could. "I'm alright."

"Check the rest of the stage." Mac told him.

Danny got to work. He could tell his boss that he'd been unable to sleep because he was anxious for Lindsay. She would be testifying at some point that day. He couldn't tell his boss that hanging out with Flack in the evenings was nothing like having Lindsay by his side; shooting a game of pool with his was NOTHING like shooting pool with Lindsay. He couldn't tell his boss that her scent was fading from the sheets and pillows on their bed. He couldn't tell Mac that their phone calls were getting shorter and shorter and that she had become distant in the last few days. He couldn't sleep or eat and the only reason he'd worked for the last thirty six plus hours was by choice.

**

Stella sat in her office, trying to take a quick, quiet break. Already that morning she'd been at a scene, talked to Sid, processed her fair share of evidence and had gone back out with Mac to update him on the case and it wasn't even noon. She had a website that she wanted to check out about her health status.

No sooner did her Greek backside hit the chair, than phone rang. Without looking, her hand found the receiver.

"Bonasera."

"Hey Stell." It was almost a sigh and Lindsay's voice warrented Stella's full attention. Frantically Stella looked around the lab for Danny and anyone else who might want to talk to her, but she was no one and she focused on their conversation.

"Hey Linday, how are you?"

"Good, I'm good." Lindsay stood in the noisy hall before court started.

"How's the trial going?" The update that night before had said the same thing as every night since the trial started: evidence was introduced, witnesses were called everything pointed to Cadence.

What the e-mails didn't say was that she was angry, frustrated and tired.

She was angry that it was taking so long. Angry that he always found some way to catch her eye and give her a grin that made her skin crawl, and angry that everyone was saying the same thing over and over, but no one seemed to listen. She was angry that it took her quitting her ten years, job, moving away, and changing careers before all of this started to resolve itself.

She was tired. She hadn't been sleeping, for obvious reasons. Tension was high in the town and she was ready to leave. She was tired from and of sitting on the hard benches for eight hours a day. She was tired of sleeping alone and not having the comfort and secure feeling of having Danny beside her.

She was frustrated at lawyer speak. Her friends who died were always referred to as Miss Jones, Miss Hawkins, and/or Miss Pearson and never by their first names. That took all of the life and personality out of her friends. She got royally pissed off when they were referred to as the victims or the victim.

Lindsay remembered that Stella had asked a question. "Good, at least the prosecutor says it is." So many things had been thrown back and forth she didn't know how she felt about the proceedings.

"When do you testify?"

"This afternoon. It's weird, I've testified in this building like a hundred times. I was always the forensic expert, not the witness to a crime." Lindsay felt unsure about how it would all go when she sat in that box in front of everybody.

Stella knew that it had been a while since Lindsay had testified. "You just get up there and tell the truth." She took a steadying breath. "Look, I know it's tough being up on the stand, but there's a few things you should remember." She was starting to sound like Mac. "Make eyes contact with those jurors. You're the only eye witness."

Lindsay was positive that Stella was saying something very important, however something was happening down the hall. She stood tall on her toes top try and see what was going on. She strained to see around and over other people in the hall. But it didn't really matter because he croud of photographers parted and coming down the hall with his hands cuffed in front of him was Cadence, the man that Lindsay identified as the one who committed the crime. With Stella still talking into her ear, Lindsay watched the two uniformed officers lead him into the court, but not before he looked at her and smiled that smile at her that send chills down her spine.

"Lindsay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll remember." Slightly shaken she hoped Stella would take her answer because she really didn't hear what Stella was telling her.

"Hang in there Kiddo." Lindsay came back to her senses and focused on her conversation. "If you need anything, give me a call."

"Thanks Stell, say hi to everyone for me."

"Alright."

Lindsay hung up and said a quick prayer before entering the courtroom. Taking the same seat she'd used the last week or so, the judge came in and court resumed for the day.

**

Danny walked down the hall with test results in his hands. He needed to share them with Stella. He wandered around looking for her in each of the different labs. She was rarely in her office so that was the last place he looked.

Stella could not catch a break. She was about to log onto the internet again when Danny came through the door.

"Stella." She quickly clicked out of what she was doing and turned to him. "Oh, am I interrupting?"

She looked over her desk again before answering. "Uh, no…no. I was just talking to Lindsay."

"Oh really." He crossed his arms in front of his chest ready to hear any news that Stella had.

"She doesn't sound quiet the same."

"Uh, huh."

"She's gonna be alright." He was sure that was said for his benefit, to make him feel better. "Said to tell everyone hi." Danny studied her for a few minutes, thankful that she'd heard in Lindsay's voice what he'd been hearing for the last few night. "So whachya got?"

Danny suddenly remembered the reason for his intrusion. With his mind fully focused on the Lindsay, he stumbled through the file as quickly as he could.

**

He'd been out to visit Luke Blade earlier and saw the man draw a butterfly on a piece of paper. When he folded the paper and reopened it, a real butterfly flew out. Danny wanted to borrow the piece of paper and draw a picture of Lindsay and have her appear.

Now Luke Blade was walking around the monitor that he and Stella were staring at in a full body burn. Danny leaned on his elbows and felt the coffee losing its effectiveness. Watching the burning man wander around in patterns was hypnotic and his eyes began to droop.

"They say burning is the most painful of deaths." Her sudden remark woke him a bit.

"I love it." His words were slurred and thicker with his accent. "How do they know, wha they do take a poll?" He'd been making wise cracks all day to cover for his lack of sleep and Stella was getting tired of it. "64% of dead people surveyed…" He sounded like a newscaster or documentary narrator.

"Hey, Dan if you wanna go home and catch some sleep, I can finish this up."

"no, no, no." He stood up and tried to get himself pumped and ready to work again. "I'm good. Let's get this done." It was still early in the evening in New York, court could still be in session and Lindsay would still be busy. He could hang around and help out a little longer.

**

Across the country, Lindsay had been on the stand for about two hours already. The lawyers had asked her to indentify the diner on a satellite photo, give a timeline of her day, label a diagram of the table in the diner of where everyone was sitting, and they even asked her if she recalled what everyone was eating. As an investigator, she knew they were test her memory of the day to make her a reliable witness to the witness.

"It was getting late and the place was closing up. Everybody had pretty much cleared out except for us. We just say there talking forever," Lindsay started seeing the events again in her mind. She could see each of the derails very clearly. "About boys, school, going away for the summer. We talked about how much we were going to miss each other over those months and how we were going to stay friends forever." She took a breath and smiled at the memory of their last evening together. "I remember Kelly saying that she hadn't even packed yet. She usually stayed home for the summer. This was going to be her first summer away."

Lindsay stopped her story her story and looked to Kelly's parents. Their eyes were so sympathetic for her.

"What happened next." Lindsay knew that this was going to be the hardest part, but she was going to get through this.

"I got up to go to the restroom to wash my hands. I could still hear them laughing outside the door. And I was only in there for about 15 seconds when I heard to bells chime at the front door and uh, that's when I heard the first shot." The courtroom was starting to disappear around her and she was back in the diner bathroom and was sixteen again. "I froze. I didn't know what to do. I just froze. I could hear them screaming in the other room. This I heard another shot." The sounds in her mind scared her, even all the years later. "and then another and another." Lindsay was almost hysterical. She was reliving it. "I just curled up in the corner and covered my ears." Without knowing it, she had taken that position again in the witness box.

"Just take your time." The prosecutor tried to bring her back to calm. "I know this is hard."

Lindsay could't shake the feelings; she couldn't bring herself out of that memory. The looks she'd gotten from the people in the town all those years ago were back a hundred fold. Each person in the courtroom was staring at her. "I uh, I…can we stop?" She was still breathing shallowly and looking around wildly.

"Your honor, this might be a good time to take a break. Maybe we can finish Ms. Monroe's testimony tomorrow."

She avoided every look and every person as she left the courthouse and went out to the truck. When she pulled into the driveway, she couldn't remember how she'd gotten there. Bypassing the comfort of the house, she sought refuge in the barn once again. She wedged herself in the corner of the loft with the lights off, curled up and covering her ears. The howling of the winter wind outside masked the sounds of her cries.

**

Danny continued working like a robot. He couldn't reach Lindsay. Her parents hadn't seen her and another body turned up that could have been connected to the Luke Blade show. He worked with Stella all day and then Mac pulled him out of the lab. Hours later he walked into a lab to find Mac with some results.

"Substance I recovered from the gas can is…" Danny had forgotten what it was in the fog of his mind and looked in the file.

"Stunt gel." Mac supplied.

"Why do I even bother if you already have the answer?"

"Everything's got to be backed up by science." Mac watched Danny study the file. He could read something new on the younger man's face: worry. Blended into the sleep deprived face was worry. They'd all worked around the clock .

"Hey when were done here, you go home and take the day."

"Normall, I'd fight with you but I'm too tired. That sounds great." Danny watched as his boss slathered his arm up with goop and layers of clothing. He picked up the lighter and held it out.

"You wanna do the honors?"

"You lighting your arm up in the name of science?" Danny questioned.

"What other job allows you to set your boos on fire…going once…going twice…" He waved the lighter at Danny.

"Sold, but if you go up in flames, I get your office."

**

Lindsay crawled down from the loft. She made a quick visit to her horse and then went straight in and got a shower before turning in for the night. It was still a little early, but sleep would be difficult to come by and if she turned in early, there was a better chance of catching at least a few hours of sleep.

**

He called on his way to the train and her parents told him that she had testified that day. It must not have gone so well because she was already in bed and asleep. They talked for a few more minutes and they'd told him that she'd been home for a while and went straight to the barn. He knew what that meant from previous talks with Lindsay.

On the train ride home he formulated a plan that included a shower and some sleep. He barely remembered the walk from the station to their building, past the mailboxes, and onto the elevator. He unlocked the door to their apartment and shuffled through the mail. An envelope from Ed McMahan told him that "he could be a winner." The next envelope was addressed to Lindsay. He knew that he was a winner and the best prize that he could ever get was the love of Lindsay Monroe. He had a sudden urge to be with her.

"Go with your instincts."

He dropped the mail on the counter, turned off the lights and left the apartment. His destination: The airport.

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_Thank you for reading please review and tell your friends. The rest of Sleight out of Hand is coming up in the next chapter._


	41. Chapter 41

_Massive Author Notes at the end. I know you want to read this first, so I will stop talking now. Please stay tuned at the end for author notes._

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Lindsay could tell anyone who asked what the temperature was every couple of hours the night after she testified for the first time. Nightmares plagued her sleep and she was up every two hours. While she was up she crept through the darkened house to the kitchen for a drink. Above the sink, a thermometer was attached to the window that looked out onto her mother's summer garden. She saw the temperature dip to a low of nineteen degrees. The last time she went down for a glass of water was around 2am. Turning her glass over in the drainer in the sink, she hoped to sleep until her alarm was to go off around 7am. It would leave her with enough time to get ready and have a small breakfast before she had to be at the courthouse at 9.

**

Danny unlocked the door to their apartment again not thirty seconds after locking it. In his desire to get to Lindsay he'd forgotten to grab some essential items on his way out the door. Grabbing a few clean changes of clothes and everything he needed from the bathroom, he once again locked the door and walked towards the street.

**

No matter how many times he flashed his badge, he was not going to be getting to Bozeman any earlier than lunchtime and the flight that got him there didn't leave until 7am. He had three hours to kill while waiting for his plane. He tried to get some sleep, but the seats in the gate area were just not conducive to it, no matter how many positions he tried. He started watching people, but at 3am the people to watch were boring, tired, crabby, and had no humor. It was too early to browse in the gift shops and too early for the restaurants. He dozed off for about 45 minutes, but as more people started passing through, it became more and more difficult. Finding an open place to eat, he ordered a quick light breakfast and some coffee that turned out to be very weak.

**

Lindsay woke again when she heard the movement of her parents around the house. Deciding that it didn't seem likely that she'd get anymore sleep, she got out of bed. She looked at her clock, it was barely 5am. It was going to be a long day.

In the kitchen she found her parents sitting at the table drinking coffee and reading the morning paper. Neither looked up when she entered. A cup of coffee was fixed and she joined her parents.

"How'd it go yesterday?" Her mother's question was so simple, yet so complicated.

"Yesterday, uh, I started my testimony, but was stopped in the middle." Her parents knew there was more to the story than that, but didn't ask.

"So you finish today?" Her mother continued her line of questioning.

"Yeah, it should be quick." Lindsay dove into her bowl of corn flakes and grabbed the front page before any more questions could be asked.

"Danny called." Her father said it as if it were an article on page six. Lindsay dropped her spoon and started at him.

"When?"

"Last night, you weren't home the first time he called and then you were asleep the second time." He watched his only daughter jump up and take the phone off the wall. The cord only let her get so far. She frantically called his number and talked to her parents at the same time.

"I forgot to call at the end of court last night." She listened as his voice mail picked up. She left a message and hung up. She went back to the table to finish her cereal.

**

The first part of the trip would be five and a half hours. He found his seat and stowed his bag above his head. Once the plane was airborne, he started some white noise on his iPod and leaned back to get some sleep.

**

The morning session of court was delayed due to heavy snow that had fallen the night before. Lindsay got a call from the court clerk informing her that they would be starting late, however she was already downtown. With the newly learned information, she took the time to do some window shopping on the square.

At lunch, Lindsay stood in front of the diner from her childhood. It was a place that she avoided at all costs. Over the years new owners had come and gone. Every time the diner reopened under new management there would be great hoopla and articles were published and they never forgot to mention the murders in each and every article.

Lindsay crossed the street and peeked in the front windows. It looked totally different. The counter was on the opposite side of the space, there were no more tables with chairs, but instead it was all booths and counter. In a flash the space in front of her changed and all she saw were her friends lying on the floor. She turned quickly and walked down the street towards the courthouse.

**

The pilot's voice woke Danny from the best sleep that he'd gotten in days. The wheels hitting the runway alerted him fully to his surroundings. He had only about thirty-five minutes to find the plane that was heading north towards Montana. Hurrying out of the plane, he found a monitor and ran to the next gate. The passengers were just being called to board. He stood in the back of the line and patiently waited. He was able to relax only after he was in the air and an hour and a half away from Lindsay.

**

Lindsay bought a hot dog at another diner and ate it as she walked down the street. For the briefest moment, she believed that she was back in New York. The moment passed when she stopped at the base of the courthouse stairs and stared up and then gloomy building. She threw away the garbage from her lunch and mounted the steps.

**

When the wheels of the plane hit the ground this time Danny was ready to deplane. When the jet way touched the plane he was at the door about to leap across the small gap between the two just so he could get on his way. He weaved his way off the plane, bag thrown over his shoulder. The first thing he found was the car rental counter. With car keys and a map in hand he headed toward the parking lot and then towards the center of town.

**

Court was called to order at 1pm. The judge apologized profusely for the delay. After a few pieces of legal housekeeping were taken care of, Lindsay was called back up to the stand.

**

Danny walked into the courthouse and through the metal detectors. When it went off, he showed the security guard his shield and he was waved thorough. The guard then spoke.

"The courtroom you're looking for is to the left." Danny stopped and looked at the guard." "We don't get many NYPD officers here, and since that's where Ms. Monroe's been for the last year or so, I just assumed you were here for her." Danny nodded in appreciation and headed in the direction the guard indicated.

He passed the room with open door and stopped outside the last room in the hall. It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. He wondered if anyone was behind the closed doors or not. A male's voice indicated to him from inside that he was in the right place. From inside the room he heard a question: "Ms. Monroe, could you please tell the jury what happened after you heard the gunshots?"

Danny strained to listen through the door. Lindsay thought her answer out. She had to go back into her memories.

"It was quiet, but I could hear footsteps outside the door and the faucet was still running. I remember being scared that whoever was out there would hear it."

Danny knew what was going to happen next in the story. He heard a pause and decided it was the time to enter.

He opened the door and nodded at the bailiff standing there. Lindsay thought she was seeing a ghost or someone who looked a lot like Danny. He slowly walked up the center aisle. He looked humble, yet at the same time like a knight in shining armor to her. All of a sudden it hit her that he was real and that he was standing in front of her. He took a seat in the gallery. Lindsay smiled faintly to herself, amazed that Danny had come.

"Ms. Monroe." The lawyer asked.

Taking a cleansing breath, she continued her story. "I'm not sure why or what I was thinking, but…I…uh…I went to the door and I opened it just enough to see out."

"What did you see?"

"I saw a man…holding a shotgun…covered in blood." Lindsay stared off into space and saw it as she described the scene.

The lawyer asked. "The man you saw, is he in this courtroom today?"

"Yes, he's sitting right there in the gray suit."

Lindsay looked at Cadence sitting at the defendant's table. The parents of the killed girls looked over at him. Even Danny stared at the back of his head. Daniel Cadence sat back in his seat knowing that there was no chance for him anymore. The power was now on her side.

"Ms. Monroe, was there a time after, that you left the restroom."

"Yeah, I heard the front door chime again and I waited a few seconds…then went out."

"And what did you see Lindsay?"

Again Danny knew what was coming. Lindsay's nightmare were described to him in minute detail and she was about to share it.

"I saw my friends. There was so much blood. Sarah, the girl who worked there, I saw her on the floor near the register. Then I went to the counter and called 911."

Lindsay finished her sentence and looked at Danny. It was a look that stated 'there, it's out completely and its finally over.'

She left the stand and took a seat next to Danny. They sat close together and listened to the short closing arguments from both sides and then the jury was led out to the deliberation room.

Everyone filed out of the courtroom and the first chance that she had, she pulled him close and tight. He forgot how well they fit together; how her head tucked perfectly into the side of his neck between his shoulder and ear. She forgot how his scent could calm her immediately. They stood around a corner and own a corridor that was out of the main flow of traffic. He enjoyed the stillness of their reunion until he realized that she really wasn't standing still, but quietly crying.

"Linds?" it was the first he'd said out loud to her. "Hey, what's goin' on?" He just held her as she cried it all out and leaned on him. Her cried dwindled to sniffles and then nothing. Hey eyes met his again and he saw the redness and puffiness. "You alright?"

"You're here. I'm great." She sniffled once again.

"Your little outburst a second ago says different."

She laughed and backed away enough to wipe tears from her cheeks. Being away, being back, facing her past, seeing him there, everything coming to an end; it was all too much and she needed the emotional release.

"No, I'm good. I'm hungry." Her eyes got wide. "They're gonna be a while, let's grab a bite. I think I know of a place." She laced her fingers with his and they walked out.

**

Danny could tell she wasn't totally over all this. He watched the focus in her eyes as they walked. She had a definite location in mind. She slowed and then stopped on a corner. With one extended finger, she pointed across the intersection.

"I want to eat there."

Danny looked around to get his baring, then he realized where they were. The diner, the scene of the crime was across the street. "Linds, are you sure?"

"Yep!" She tightened the grip on his hand and crossed the street.

**

A piece of apple pie was all that separated them on the table. She had a few moments at the beginning of their meal that she didn't think she'd make it through, but having Danny with her really helped. They discussed everything from the trial to her horse and her feelings about being back home. Apple pie was delivered to their table and both Danny and Lindsay held their forks ready to pounce, but the pie would be left behind and the ice cream would melt because Lindsay's phone rang.

The jury had reached a verdict.

**

She was nervous.

He was nervous.

She was anxious.

He just wanted it to be over.

The judge looked over the statement from the jury and folded it up. He passed the note back.

"Will the defendant please rise." Danny looked at Lindsay. He wanted to make sure that she was okay, but she was too focused on the proceedings in from of them.

"Madame Forewoman, you have reached a verdict." Lindsay slid her hand across the front of his hip in search of his hand. She needed something to hold on to while the verdict was read. The courtroom held its breath.

"In the matter of the people vs. Daniel Cadence we find the defendant guilty of murder in the first degree."

There was a collective sigh of relief. The courtroom started to empty and Lindsay let her head fall onto Danny's shoulder. Daniel Cadence was cuffed and led away from Lindsay and her life. Danny stood and pulled her up with him. He brought her into his body for an intense squeeze. The pressure from his arms wrapped around her seemed to press the stress from her. The last month of her life fell down her body and down into the floor leaving her feeling light and airy.

He let her go and turned to leave with her and still in his. He'd taken a few steps and yet Lindsay didn't follow. He felt a slight tug on his hand. He looked back at their hands and then up to her face. There was something in her eyes that he hadn't seen in a long time. He saw the sparkle, the life and a little mischief. She tugged on his hand to gently pull him back to her.

He studied her face. A flirty smile was upon her lips. Her head was slightly tilted to one side and there was love in her eyes along with something else. It was something he saw just before she took a shot in pool. It was what he saw when she suggested that they leave the pool table behind when they moved. It was a flirty mischievous look that he missed. She had something in store for him. She brought him closer. He stopped when he stood right in front of her. His hand was still enclosed in hers. He smoothly started to lean down so their lips could meet. He dreamed about this kiss in his sleep while on the plane. In his dream, the world fell away as his lips met her and for long breathless moments their love consumed them.

His lips came closer and closer to hers. He could smell the lingering scent of her shampoo and lotion. For a millisecond he breathed it in. Her closeness, her scent and the death like grip that she had on his hand had his hopes high for what was about to come. The world was beginning to fall away.

In a flash it was back. He was sucked back into reality by a group of reports asking questions and flashing pictures. He gritted his teeth together and looked at the reporters. With love surging through his veins, he pulled her from the courtroom.

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_-- Hello and here we are at Chapter 41. I would love to thank all of you for reading. Without you, I would not still be doing this. Plus you are awesome to review. You have pushed the reviews to 400 at only chapter 40. Thank you thank you thank you._

_-- One of the reviews that I got for chapter 40 mentioned the CSI: NY Fanfiction Awards that are run through the forums. It feels wierd to nominate myself, but if any of you would like to head over there and mention this story or any of the ones that I have done, I would be honored. Just the fact that someone would suggest it is an honor. The person who suggested it also stated that there is a list in a C2 of the nominated stories. Head over and check it out._

_-- Life has unexpectedly gotten messy on my end. I have been finding less and less time to write. But I am working on this when I can and will try and update whenever I can. I have caught up to what I have hand written and as I type this I am without anything new to add. I AM NOT GIVING UP ON THIS. I find too much pleasure from writing and I get plenty of rewards through your words and encouragements. Please keep them coming. I hope to update at least every other day._

_--I hope you liked this chapter, and I hope that I did right by you with it._


	42. Chapter 42

_Even thought I knew what was coming on Thursday night on the season finale, I cried my eyes out. _

_Coming back to present in this story, Danny has just run out of the court room with Lindsay in tow after the reporters stopped their kiss. Please read._

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Donald Flack Jr. knew the moment that the door swung open in front of him that his suit was going to the trash at the end of the day and he hadn't even found the body yet. Trash was piled at least three feet deep throughout the front room of the house. There was a path from the front door towards the back of the house and the floor squished as he walked and he kissed his shoes goodbye. What a way to start a Monday morning.

It was humid in the house and the putrefied stench of feces, mold, and death was so think that he could taste it. And then there were cats somewhere, lots of them. The ammonia from their urine burned his eyes and he started sneezing. He was going to be miserable and he'd just gotten there.

Neighbors called animal control about the cats that were wandering in and out of the open window at the back of the house. A neighbor got close to see what was going on, the smell caused them to call the police. The first officer let in animal control with specific instructions not to touch anything. Flack didn't think it would have mattered any if they touched anything or not.

With his arm up, covering as much of his mouth and nose, he inched through the room to find the body and the CSI who was meeting him there. He winced when the kitchen came into view. Dishes were piled on every flat surface, pots were stacked and baked food clung to them. The fridge door was open and things were growing and oozing out of it. He meant only to have a quick glance as he walked by, but even that was too long. He followed his nose down the hall and hoped it would be a quick determination of murder of natural causes.

In the doorway of the bedroom where the body was, he found the most disturbing image of all: Danny Messer covered from head to toe in a Tyvec suit and face mask. He was moving and grooving to music that only he could hear as he was inspecting the body. The worst part of it was that Flack could tell that his friend was smiling. In this trashed, garbage piled, cat infested house he could tell from the look in Danny's eyes that there was a smile behind that face mask.

"What's the verdict."

"Guilty."

Flick tilted his head and his eyes went quizzical.

"You weren't talking about Lindsay's case were you? This guy…it's hard to tell in all of the bodily fluids if he was shot and bled out or if he died and decayed, but" he turned the guy's head and pointed to something "this itty bitty hold in his head looks like a bullet hole." He pointed around the room. "There's no gun around so I would have to say that it wasn't self inflicted. This, my Donnie dear is a murder." Danny stood next to his friend and patted him on the shoulder with a gooey hand leaving a discolored hand print for his friend to inspect.

"Thanks Messer."

In front of the house Danny gave the go ahead to the ME to take the body. Flack was checking out the damage to his suit. Yep, the next stop for it would not be the cleaners, but the garbage can.

"What's got you in a such a good mood?" I would think you had a good weekend with Lindsay, but she's in Montana. I tried calling for a game of hoops on Saturday, but kept getting voice mail."

"I did have a great weekend, I was with Lindsay. I flew to Montana on Friday morning."

"Yeah?" Flack was taken aback.

"Yeah."

"How'd that happen?"

"I went with me instincts."

**

"And then what happened?"

"The door at the back of the courtroom opened and Danny walked in." Lindsay was filling Stella in about their weekend over the phone. "I don't think that I would have made it through my testimony without him."

"What happened after the verdict?"

"I pulled him back for a kiss and then the stupid reporters came in. He pulled me out of the courtroom, followed me back to the ranch where mom had a huge feast and Danny met two of my brothers."

"How'd that go?"

**

"Flack these two guys were huge; they both have stayed in the area and help out with the ranching. The moment I stepped in the house, the questions started: what were my intentions, what are my future plans, how serious am I about their sister? I answered them clearly and with a NYPD attitude. Mama Monroe had to step in and told her boys that I was okay." The two men had made it back to the lab and were in the locker room changing.

"How's Linds?"

"When I got there she was a scared hollow shell of herself but once her whole story was out and especially after the verdict was read, she returned to her old self."

**

"Did you have a nice visit with him in the forty-eight hours that he was there?" Stella was looking for dirt to spring on him when he least expected it.

"It was nice to be able to look in his eyes again and see his face."

"How'd he handle being in the country?"

"I got Danny on the back of a horse." Stella could hear the humor of this story in her voice.

**

"You what?"

"Yeah, I know, I know."

"You went horseback riding in the dead of winter?" Flack couldn't believe his ears. Danny was just listing some of the things that they had done, and he regretted mentioning it the moment it slipped past his lips.

"She had this horse and she wanted to go for a ride and show me the property."

"How'd that go?"

"It was kinda like riding on the back of a motorcycle."

Flack could not think of any reason why he would be on the BACK of his own motorcycle.

**

"It felt so good to have him close and showing him something that I loved to do. However, he is not one for wide open spaces and wildlife. I thought he was going to pull his gun out when we saw an elk walk through the woods."

"So you got Danny on a horse, anything else I should know about?"

Lindsay laughed, if only Stella knew the things that she got Danny to do that weekend. "Danny would never make it as a cowboy. He needs to concrete and steel. He needs the noise and the chaos of the city. He didn't sleet well in the quiet country."

"Yeah, and I'm sure you had nothing to do with that."

**

"So Mac gives you the day off and you go off and fly to Montana. You ride in, save the girl, hit it off with the brothers, ride around on a horse, do a little romancin'. Is there anything you won't do for this woman?" Flack knew that these two were perfect for each other and he hoped that Danny realized what he had in her.

Danny's face went blank as he thought. Every few seconds he started, "I wouldn't…" but then thought again. "I…no I might do that," "I don't think…" But then he grinned. "Nope, I'd do anything for her." Once again he hit Flack on the shoulder as he passed to exit the room to get a start on the evidence from earlier.

**

"You're sounding better. When are you coming home?"

"My flight comes in on Friday night, but Danny thinks its Saturday. I'm going to come in and surprise him. I'll call you when I land to see if he's still working."

"Sounds good, see you then."

**

**

Danny had one shift left before Linds came home: the late shift on Friday. He hoped for a big scene to process to help pass the time, but nothing came in. He, Stella and Adam were the only ones in the lab. Stella was doing paper work, Adam was processing something and Danny was torn between paper work and seeing how many pencils he could get stuck in the ceiling.

**

"Bonasera."

"Hey, I'm back in the city. Danny already go home?"

"Nope, he's on the late shift tonight and a few minutes ago, he was making paper clip chains." She heard Lindsay's laughter on the other end of the line.

"Keep him there, I'm coming to you."

At that very moment the man in question knocked on Stella's door. She waved one finger at him asking for a second to finish her conversation.

"Alright, can do, bye." She hung up the phone. "What's up?"

"If it's alright, I'm gonna head home, its dead 'round 'ere. No pun intended." His hands went out in front of him in surrender.

"That sounds good, but let me run down to the ME's office before you leave." She pulled a random file from her desk as if it were the reason for the trip.

"Sure, sure. I'll hang out with Adam until you get back."

**

Stella paced the lobby waiting for Lindsay. Twenty minutes passed and she still hadn't shown. She could send Danny home and then redirect Lindsay, she could find something for Danny to do, or she could just keep pacing.

The pacing idea worked because a couple second later Lindsay came in dragging her bags behind her.

"Oh, good. Danny asked if he could go home. I told him I need to go down to see Sid and asked if he could stay until I got back up."

**

"Adam did you know that there are 108 double stitches on a baseball?"

No looking up, Adam gave a quiet "Uh-huh."

"The maximum weight for a golf ball is 1.62 ounces." Danny flipped another few pages in his 365-day sports trivia calendar that his mother had gotten him for Christmas. "There are 336 dimples on a regulation golf ball."

"Danny." Adam wanted to take the calendar and find the nearest shredder. But instead, "Come look at this."

His hand came up to lift his glasses off his nose when he thought he saw Lindsay walk down the hall with Stella. He'd seen her before in the lab. He was working the Luke Blade case and while processing fingerprints a lab tech walked by, but Danny saw Lindsay instead. When he blinked he saw the lab tech instead of Lindsay. He thought he was losing it. But this time he blinked, the form and figure that he thought was Lindsay, stayed Lindsay. He blinked again and again.

"You got something in your eye, man?" Adam asked.

"No…Adam, who's walking with Stella?" He pointed out the two women and then crossed his arms.

"Looks like Lindsay, but she's not supposed to be here until tomorrow."

The words left his mouth and Danny passed while taking off his lab coat. "Night Adam"

"Um…he's not gonna look at this is he?" Adam said to no one.

Lindsay was caught totally off guard when he turned her around by the arm and crashed his lips to hers. He bunched her hair up in his hands as he forcefully kept her face to his.

When she said goodbye to him at the security check point in Montana, she tenderly embraced him that one last time, but as he pulled away, her hand covered the back of his head and brought his face to hers one more time. Her eyes were crazed and wild. She took total control of a deep, open mouthed kiss and her tongue swept through his mouth three times before he dropped his bag and kissed back. She clawed through his hair and kept breaking the lock she had on his lips only to dive in for more. She held him and went back and forth between soulful kisses to brushing her lips against his softly. Final call was made for his flight and she whispered on final thought, "Just a little something to keep you warm at night until I get home."

Now she was home and a day early. "What are you doing here?"

Coyly she responded. "I thought I might surprise you." After another few kisses he looked as if he was going to say something important, monumental, earth shattering. He framed her jaw in his hands and gave her an Eskimo kiss.

"You're gonna have to ignore the apartment. I was gonna clean it up tomorrow before I picked you up."

"Spoken like a true romantic." She looped her arm in his and they left the lab.

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_Please send me a few words and review._

_It__ warmed my heart to see so many new people send in a few words of support and appreciation for the story. Thank you. Also I was honored to see that my name popped up on two of the categories in the fanfic award noms. Again thank you so much. _

_I know that we have crossed the hurdle of Lindsay's back ground, but there is much more to come._

_Sorry for the delay in post. I know you are used to updates at least every other day. I'm working on it._


	43. Chapter 43

_A/N at end._

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She stood and looked around, proud of the work that she and Danny had done. It didn't look like the same apartment that she came home to the night before, well early this morning. Before they started there were half empty grocer bags on the counters filled with junk food. Dishes were piled in the sink. Spoiled milk was in the fridge, but there was cold beer. There was a stack of pizza boxes sitting next to the garbage can as well as take out boxes and bags. The laundry was piled up and ready to be done. And the place was just messy.

Lindsay and Danny spent most of Saturday morning straightening and doing laundry. They quickly found their rhythm and reconnected again. When they passed, she'd purposefully brush against him or got in his way. It was a wonderful few hours of touches and flirty looks and banter and kisses.

His phone rang mid afternoon. "Messer." He held Lindsay close in front of him with one arm as he spoke.

"Mess, Sullivan's eight o'clock tonight. We'll have a drink celebrating Lindsay's return."

Danny shied away and began speaking. "Sorry sweetie, my girlfriend's back in town. I can't be there tonight." Lindsay's face dropped and lost all its color, until Danny mouthed the word "Flack" at her. She could hear their best friend questioning why Danny had just called him 'sweetie.'

"We'll be there Flack." His phone was thrown somewhere on the floor and he snuggled deep into the covers with his girlfriend, taking a nice long break from their cleaning.

**

It was loud, it was crowded, and it was perfect. Lindsay loved the atmosphere and she was home when they walked into the bar that night. She saw Flack off at their regular table with Mac and Peyton, Stella, Adam and Hawkes. Stella saw her first and came at her with open arms and curls bouncing. She brought Lindsay in for a tight hug.

"Oof, you've already seen me."

"I know, but Danny whisked you away so quickly…"

"Alright, alright, break it up you two; give the rest of us a chance." Flack pried Lindsay from Stella's arms and encased her in a huge bear hug. "Thank God you're back. Maybe things will go back to normal with this guy." He pointed towards Danny

Lindsay was passed from person to person. Hugs and welcome backs and questions about how things were going kept coming at her from all sides. Quickly and politely she answered them before Danny pushed a beer into her hands.

"Thank you." She leaned back and whispered before kissing his cheek and then going back to her conversations. Everyone at the table saw the peace in his eyes and the happiness in hers.

**

"So, when do you go back to school?" Stella asked before taking aim at the next solid and hitting it.

"Monday morning, 9am." Lindsay watched her opponent easily hit another one, but miss. "Life goes back to normal 9am Monday morning. I will get back into a routine and life will finally settle down again." She stalked around the table looking for something to shoot at. Playing pool with Stella was like having a knitting circle. But instead of knitting while they talked, they played pool. Stella was a wonderful player and was always taking trickier shots. Lindsay had learned a few things from watching her friend play. Danny would really have to watch out next time they played.

Mac and Peyton said their goodnights and headed out. Sheldon, Flack and Danny watched the girls as they got competitive and fancy with their game.

"So, anything happen here that I should know about?" Lindsay questioned when she came over to the table to get a drink. Everyone just looked at each other.

"No, the only thing that's really happened was that Mac and Peyton got together." Lindsay walked back over for her last turn.

"And everyone says that the city is so exciting…" Shot taken, game won.

**

Lindsay was nervous. She hadn't been in the classroom for a month and she hadn't been in contact with her students other than the few times that Danny went over to see them. When the bell rang she stood at her door and chatted with a few colleges and her students as they filed in. When the second bell rang, she came into her room and her desk was covered with apples.

"Wow, thank you." Her eyes went from the desk to her students' faces.

"Welcome back Ms. Monroe." Each student's voice chimed into the chorus very sweetly. At the end they put on their most innocent smiles and stared at her. Something was up.

"Okay, what's going on?" Everyone looked at each other with giggles and tiny snickers. She had a suspicion but needed confirmation.

"We were told not to tell."

"But what if I guess?" A couple of kids nodded their heads. "Did someone ask you to do this?" More heads nodded. "Does this someone work here?" The kids looked to each other and then shook their heads 'no' just as she thought. "Was this person a police officer?" Smiles shined on their faces and their heads bounced up and down. "So Danny had you guys bring apples for the teacher on her first day back." They all smiled at her. Danny was earning points.

That's how it went with her other two classes before lunch. Each of her students placed a shiny red apple on her desk. She had no clue how she was going to get all of them home or even eaten before they all went bad. She ate one for lunch and cleared a spot for all the fruit that her afternoon class would bring. But no apples came when the bell rang. No students came either.

She checked the hall and saw only one of her students. She was carrying a clear glass pitcher in her hands. Before sitting down at her desk, she put about three inches of water in the bottom of the pitcher and then set it on Lindsay's desk. It was all done in silence even though Lindsay tried to get answers.

Another student came in while the first was taking her seat. He handed a folded note card to Lindsay and sat down quietly. Inside it read "White roses, one each for your friends who died in their innocence." Lindsay watched as three white roses were brought in and placed in her pitcher by three of her students.

The next student to arrive came in with another note and handed it to her as they walked by. "Lavender is for love at first sight. Our love may not have been at first sight, but it was pretty damn close." She laughed and had to agree with him. A lavender rose came in with the next student and was added to the other three.

Another student and another note. "Friendship, it's the glue that makes us strong, so here's a yellow rose." The student came into the room singing the 'Yellow Rose of Texas' under her breath.

There were only nine students sitting in their seats and fifteen minutes had already passed. She looked into the hall and another one of her students was coming around the corner with a note. "Red=Love. I love you." She already knew who was orchestrating this whole production and his current note just confirmed it further. The rose soon followed, adding its bold color to the mix.

"Given together, the red and white roses signify unity." She read the note as the student who had brought it in sat down quietly. Movement from down the hall drew her attention. Kari and Kaitlyn, a set of twins from her afternoon class were carry a rose, one had a white rose and one had a red rose. She almost teared up. The two girls placed their flowers in the make shift vase and Lindsay stepped back out into the hall. She figured this would not be over until her whole class was sitting in front of her. That meant there was still more to come.

"I think he only has three more." Kari told her.

So he was in the building, that sneaky man. Lindsay knew that he was supposed to be at work.

The next note and rose showed up at the same time. "Orange signifies desire – enough said." The orange rose brought the flower count to nine and she still had four students missing.

Danny must have had a mix up because two notes showed up before the two matching roses. "Pink stands for perfect happiness – I have that with you." And "Peach is given in appreciation." The two roses came through the door and were added to the rest. She counted the flowers and there were eleven, each had its own meaning to him and the completed bouquet was so beautiful. She flipped through the notes again and took a look at the roses as she read.

Someone cleared their throat at the door. Rose number twelve, another red rose, was being delivered by Detective Danny Messer himself.

"Hey guys, give me a second." She stepped into the hall and closed the door partially.

He took her into his arms gently. "Welcome home, welcome back to a normal life, and I hope you had a good first day back."

Tears for his gesture and the man welled up in the corners of her eyes. "Thank you and I love each of my roses."

"Well, they come in dozens, so here's the last one. I need to get back." He focused on her eyes. "I'll see you at home tonight." A quick peck to the side of her face and he left.

A chorus of 'ohhs' met her when she came back in. She placed the 12th rose into the bouquet and got down to business.

"Okay, okay, cut it out. Let's get back to it."

**

On Danny's desk in the lab there was a cluster of small cacti in a flat terra cotta pot waiting for him when he returned to work. He pulled the card from the plant poke and read "You're a diamond in the rough, but you're kinda cute and loveable. I guess I'll keep you. --Montana" He tucked the note away in his wallet and got back to work.

**

On top of the coffee table was her bouquet of roses. They still looked great after a few days in the classroom and they made it home in one piece. Danny was working a late shift and she was up late watching the news and looking her flowers.

"Hey baby, how ya doin'? Lindsay could hear the noise of the lab behind him. She muted the late night news so she could hear him.

"I'm alright."

"Which of the seven dwarves are you tonight?" He drawled.

She went through the list in her head: Sleepy – a little, Sneezy – nope, Dopey – no way, Grumpy – no, Happy – definitely, Bashful – nope, and Doc – not tonight. "I'm a mix of sleepy and happy, why?"

"Because a month ago, you were very grumpy. It was February 13th and you wanted to be home on Valentine's Day. Tomorrow is your Valentine's Day. I will be sending you an e-mail." No sooner were the words out of his mouth and into her ear, than the computer dinged behind her on the desk. "When you get it, answer the few questions and send it back to me."

She was intrigued by his request. As she said goodnight she rose from the couch and checked her e-mail. He was right; there was an e-mail from him. It started out talking about the flowers, candles, chocolate, and candy hearts that he promised from a month ago while she was in Montana. It went onto to ask her three questions that she found very odd when she put them together. She felt like she was choosing her own adventure.

She fell into a deep sleep trying to figure out what he had up his sleeve.

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_Okay, so it wasn't one of my favorite chapters, but it was needed to get to the next few. And what's coming up you ask? Daze of Wine and Roaches, Mac and Dobson, and SNOW DAY!!!_

_There have been a lot, a lot, a lot of questions about how I am going to deal with Rikki and Ruben. I don't really know yet. I have been trying not to change the time line that much, so something will happen...just don't know what yet. Suggestions would be welcome._

_As always please review. I am wondering, does the table of contents in chapter 36 help anyone else but me? I am thinking about updating it every so often._


	44. Chapter 44

_And let Valentine's Day for them begin_

_Author's notes at the end._

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1) Would you like to have a formal or casual evening?

It was the first question in his e-mail. She had answered that she wanted a casual evening. It was the end of her first week back and she really didn't want to come home and get all dressed up for a formal date. She knew Danny would look fabulous and delicious all dressed up, but that would wait for another night.

Picking out something to wear fort he evening was becoming tricky. She stood in front of the closet trying to find the best things to wear. It had to be something comfortable yet not something that she might lounge around the house in. Sweats or jeans were out, but that did not mean that they did not look good to her at this point in the week. She also did not want to wear what she wore to work because they looked more business than casual.

2) Do you want to spend the night in, out or a mix of the two?

She responded that she wanted both. She envisioned dinner out and dessert in, the opposite, or maybe dinner in and movie out. He wouldn't tell he what was going on. He'd been vague on the details. He kept tell her that she planned the night with the few questions that she asked. How could she not know what to wear?

She cringed as the hangers screeched back and forth on the rod; it was a noise she equated to fingernails on a chalk board. She pulled a red, lightweight v-neck sweater out of the closet and threw it on the bed. Her flowy black pants shuffled by and she pulled them out also. Holding them up together in front of her in front of the mirror, she approved of her choices once she saw how they went together. Everything was laid out, so it would be ready when she got out of the shower.

**

"You're making me nervous Mac. You got that look." Danny pulled at his bottom lip and stood in front of his boss's desk. The case last night rolled over to this morning after only a few hours of sleep between shifts. He'd worked his tail off on this case and hoped that it was enough to get himself out of the office in a timely fashion.

"What look is that?" The case file in his hand was forgotten.

"The one that says we're not quite finished, cancel your plans for the evening."

Mac's brow rose in amusement. "Do I get this look often?"

"Sure, but I only notice it when I have plans after work."

From Danny's answer, Mac was positive that Danny had something planned with Lindsay for the evening. He recognized the eager look Danny had in his eye. Mac knew how the man standing in front of him felt. He was close to the end of a shift and his boss could load him up with work that would keep him there for hours. He often got that feeling lately when he wanted to get out to see Peyton. He felt that way on his birthday. That was the day that would never end, but the celebration on the fifth floor was the best part of the day. Mac's stomach fluttered at the vision of Peyton a few floors below working. As soon as Danny left the office he would give her a call just to see how she was.

"Go on, get outta here." Mac told him.

"You sure?"

"You gonna get outta here or…" Danny did not get to hear the rest because he was already gone. "Ah, young love." Mac dialed Peyton's number and waited for that familiar voice to answer.

**

Danny had his plan for the night. All the way home on the train he thought of how it would go. Excitement grew as he got closer and closer to her.

**

She was in front of the bathroom mirror adding a touch of mousse to her hair. It would add to the waves and curls, and give it a little bit more bounce and body.

"Now, I know that you wanted to have a casual evening, bit I think that's a little too casual." Her hair was flung over her face as she played with it. She didn't have a clue what he was talking about. She flung her head back. Lindsay got a good look at him leaning against the bathroom door. He was devouring her with his eyes. Then she realized she was standing in nothing but a towel.

"I'm not done getting ready. And don't get any ideas; my options were casual and formal. There was no naked option." She passed him, went into the bedroom and when he went to follow, all he got was the door closed in his face.

**

Whistling could be heard when she opened the door and it was focused at her.

"Got your shoes, we're heading out."

He once again would not tell her where they were going. He took her out on the street. She asked where they were going. He took her down to the train. She asked where they were going. They took the train heading in the direction of her old apartment. She asked where they were going. That did it.

"Impatient much?" He came to a dead stop in the middle of the sidewalk, making her come to a surprising halt.

He directed up back up onto the street. He directed her to the door of the diner that they had gone to almost every day.

The place erupted the moment they walked through the door. Marty, the owner came out of the kitchen and fired all sorts of questions at them. A couple of the waitresses they recognized came over. Through conversation, Lindsay and Danny learned that one of them was engaged and the other was pregnant with her first baby. The last time they had been in, she had just been married.

As their order was being delivered to the table the two familiar faces started to depart and leave them to eat. One of them turned back quickly and asked "When's it gonna happen to you guys?" And they were left alone to enjoy their meal.

**

"Okay, guys, can I get you the usual for dessert?"

"Yeah…"

"No." Danny interrupted and handed his credit card over. Lindsay was shocked speechless. She had been looking forward to a piece of their chocolate pie with whipped cream and chocolate shavings ever since she realized where they were going for dinner. The pout she wore when Danny looked at her was another thing that he could add to the list "Sexiest Things Lindsay's Ever Done." Her bottom lip was stuck out so far and he wanted to get a hold of it. "Don't worry, I have dessert at home." He told her quickly with a kiss on the cheek and they were out of the booth and on the street.

3) What kind of night do you want: romantic, mysterious, or adventurous?

Question three made her think. Valentine's Day was about romance and love already so the real question was should she choose adventure or mystery. This was the hardest question to answer but after some thinking and knowing Danny, she chose adventure.

Stepping into the noise and flow that only New York could give her, Danny guided her towards an old haunt of hers.

"What are we doing here?"

"Montana, we're going on an adventure." Two tickets were produced from his wallet and handed to the tour guide. He ushered her onto the Grayline double decker bus. "They just changed the tour and I thought it might be a nice adventure." He chose their seats up on top and his arm came around her.

**

Three hours later they made it home. Lindsay was charged from the night air and very flirty. Danny was draggin'. He'd done a turn around at work with only about five hours of sleep and then planned their night based on her choices and was starting to feel the late hour.

She excused herself to change and when she reentered the living room, candles were a glow all around. On the coffee table were her flowers and two small bowls. Upon close inspection, she saw that one was full of chocolate kisses and the other had candy hearts. A movie was paused ready to watch.

"Wow, you pulled out all the stops for tonight."

"Yeah, don't get used to it." There was the sarcastic guy that she fell in love with.

"What are we watching?"

"Godzilla." The slightest of smiles graced her lips at the memory of their first dinner and movie night.

"I thought you hated that movie."

"I think I can handle it. Besides I have you to hold my hand." He came out of the kitchen with a plate for her. On it was a piece of the pie from the diner.

"You're good." He had it all planned out. "What if I had chosen a mysterious formal night in for us tonight?"

"I would have sent you a message to dress up and meet me at the kitchen table at a specific time. We would eat a homemade meal by candle light and then we would retire to the bedroom to explore the mysteries of a woman."

"What is I said adventurous casual night out?"

"We would have done what we just did but go back to the diner for dessert and no movie." He sat down on the couch gently and brought her into his arms and almost pressed play.

"What if I'd replied a mysterious formal night out?"

"I would have gotten Stella's help to find you a dress, sent it to you at school, with a time when I would be picking you up. I would come home at the specified time and knock on the door, with flowers of course, and escort you down to a car that would be waiting. We would then have had drinks at the top of the Empire State Building before making our reservations at that little place that you love so much. To finish off the night we would take a ride in Central Park."

"I want that now, let's go." She made like she was going to get up and tried to pull him with her.

"Nope, too late. But don't worry, we will do that some other time. You ready to start this movie?"

"One more. What if I'd decided on a romantic casual night in?" Lindsay was loving this game.

"Then I would have picked up lasagna makings, we would have made dinner together, our way." He smiled. "Then we would watch a movie and have dessert. Candy, chocolate, flowers, and candles were some how part of each plan. You done with the questions because I'm ready to start this."

"Uh-huh" was the only response she gave. She was too deep in thought about how much planning he'd done. The movie started but she paid very little attention to it. She was blinded by the amount of love that she had for this man whose arms she was laying in. She marveled at this creativity. Sure she had creative boyfriends in the past. But there's not much else to do in a small town other than paint a heart and name on the water tower, and after a while it's hard to tell where your name is amongst all the other attempts to woo a girl.

**

The bowl of candy hearts sat in his lap by the middle of the movie. Lindsay took a handful and ate them quietly.

An elbow to his ribs made him look away from the screen and down at the candy she was handing to him. "Luv U" he read and then popped it into his mouth and went back to the movie.

It wasn't the reaction that she was looking for. She hoped the movie would be forgotten and he would declare his love for her right then and there on the couch. She watched as the characters wandered around the trashed subway through piles of fish. Losing interest in the movie again, she found another heart in her hand and put it in his line of vision. "HUG ME."

Danny's head moved back in surprise and to focus on what was in front of him. Putting his arms around her, she felt pressure increase around her shoulders and then he ate the heart and went back to the movie.

He was laughing at the lizards tripping on the gum balls when another small heart with a good suggestion came across through a tiny piece of candy and she gave it to him. "Kiss me." It was pretty straight forward. But all he did was kiss the top of her head.

Lindsay had had it. She was trying to put the moves on him sweetly, but it wasn't working. She took the bowl from him and started digging. Unfortunately there were no hearts that said "Kiss me until I'm speechless" or "Take me to bed" or even "It's only Friday, give me a reason to stay in bed for the next 48 hours." Lindsay didn't think that last one would fit on a heart.

Nothing was working so she looked for two hearts that might go well together. She dumped the bowl out on the table and spread them out.

"Whachya doin'?"

"Nothing Romeo." A heart was passed to him that said 'Romeo.' "Just go back to your movie."

She found two hearts, sat back on the couch and waited for the credits to roll.

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_A/N: Thank you to Laurzz and afrozenheart412. Opening your reviews are like great presents. They also let me know what parts hit you the most._

_Thank you thank you thank you to all of those who have been staying around. I really thought I would get to DoWaR in this chapter but Valentines just kept going and going and its not over yet. _

_I wonder what her two hearts said that would get her point across.._


	45. Chapter 45

_I bet you've been asking: Why don't she write? Well I have, but on paper. I am out at the in-laws and have just been able to get to a computer. This chapter is full, very full. Please read, and reread. Make sure that you don't miss anything. Then review until the cows come home and then maybe I will get to go home._

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In her hand Lindsay held two small hearts. She didn't hold on to them too tight because she did not want the sweat from her hand to make the candy get mushy or the very direct message she was trying to get across to smudge.

She bypassed the flirty sayings like "cutie pie," "love ya," "sweet talk." There were some that she might tell him like "my man," "hot stuff," and "sweetheart." She even ate the ones that said "charm me," "home run," and "3 wishes." She knew how she would react to any of those if Danny had given them to her. Her imagination ran wild with the ideas that "3 wishes" brought up and she then regretted eating all of those and wished she'd saved some for later.

She was buzzing with sexual energy. She knew what she wanted, but her lovable dork was too into the movie. The end of the movie could come soon enough. She thought of what might happen when she handed him her two treasures. That worked her up even more. She didn't see him reach for her, but when his hand touched her leg she jumped a mile off the couch.

"Wow, jumpy much?" His hand went back to his side of the couch.

"Sorry, I was just so into the movie." Yeah, the movie was playing in her imagination. The movie that went way beyond an R rating and wasn't suitable for children. A movie where his hands were floating over the surface of her skin and doing unspeakable things to her; the noises he was getting her to make would put any porn star to shame.

"Hey!"

"Yes." It came out as a moan. She came out of her daydream and turned about the same color as her sweater. She did a double take and looked at Danny. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the credits rolling. Seeing the moment she had been waiting for all night come closer, she took things into her own hand and laid one hell of a kiss on his lips of Detective Danny Messer. Shock and surprise soon disappeared and changed into hunger and need. Two candy hearts were slipped into his hand. As surprising as the kiss had started, it ended. She was off the couch and down the hall. Momentum moved him and he fell face first into the couch as his lips sought Lindsay.

"In the mood"

"Catch my drift"

He read the candies and all the pieces started to come together. Her response when he tried to get her attention, the search through the candies, her snappy 'Romeo' remark. And now…realization hit him…and now she was laying in bed waiting. He wasted no time traveling the distance between the couch and their bed. A very nude Lindsay was waiting.

"It's 12:01. Our Valentine's Day is over so naked has become an option." she told him.

"I love the way you think."

Their love symphony had three movements. The first could be identified as the vivo in musical terms, it was lively and fast. Danny didn't have a chance after he touched her for the first time. The only way to describe what happened was to say that she attacked and devoured him whole. He didn't have time to say the loving words he knew were somewhere in his brain, they were too scrambled in the sensation of being flipped over and straddled. The inside of her thighs rubbed on his hips. She propped herself up on her hands near his head and the only thing that was clear for him to do was to hold on.

A short while later, the second movement, largo, started. She was warm and dizzy still and Danny's energy was returning. Laying on his side, looking at her, he wanted to take his time loving her this time around. He traced the shape of her hip bones and ribs. She sensually moved into his touch. She rolled away from him and he ran his fingers down her spine. Coming back up, fingers went over her shoulders and onto her collarbone. The touches applied more pressure. He made longer sweeps on her body, fingers splayed out, pulling and deeply touching her. She rolled onto her front. A brush on her instep, a line drawn on the back of her legs, slowly to her knees, thighs, waist. Her body drank up his touch, responding and writhing between his legs and under his weight. His chest came down on her back, and he reached around her ribs to continue the exploration. She grinded against him, finding that perfect harmony between his hands and her body. Slowly languidly, never breaking contact, she rolled under him. Their tempo increased as did the amount of flesh that touched. They hit the peak of a crescendo that would have made Mozart proud. Panting and feeling the wave wash over them, the music temporarily ended.

Sunshine was glowing from behind the skyline and horizon. Lindsay searched for a sugar boost. Something told her there was still another melody to come. Orange juice seemed the only option.

"I love you in my clothes."

"I love you and nothing." The counter was cold against his backside when she backed him up against it and nibbled his chest and neck.

The allegro movement started. He lifted her onto the counter and stood between her wide and legs.

"Oh, I love when you do that." She locked her feet behind his lower back. They played, laughed, tickled and tasted. She never left the counter and they finish their symphony on a high note.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"I love making beautiful sweet music with you."

"We may need to play this piece together sometime again."

**

"Ughn." The annoying beep had to stop. It was rattling all the keys in the bowl on the counter. One of the phones was going off and it would not stop. One eye opened a sliver to look at the time. The room was still dark and the time read 4:39 that Sunday morning.

"Lindsay, answer your phone."

"No way Cowboy. You're on secondary, that's gotta be your phone, you get it."

A long disgruntled moan was followed by heavy, tired footsteps. She heard him let out a string of colorful words that explained the reason for the call.

"Where's the dead body?"

**

Lindsay was putting the finishing touches on a ham and cheese sandwich and putting the fixings away when she heard two voices in the hall, than a key slide in the lock and the door open.

"Yes, those Pierpont's" she heard Flack's voice. "Stella and I left the UN party and Gerrard showed up." His voice trailed off when they were fully in the apartment and saw Lindsay making up two more sandwiches.

During Lindsay's visit to Montana, Danny had started two habits. 1) He bought Flack home with him after a long day shift to talk about their cases, have a beer, watch a game, or shoot some pool. 2) Danny started bringing his work home with him. It started as something to do with the long quiet hours but it became a habit.

Two plates were put on the counter in front of the bar stools were she knew the two men would be sitting.

"Hello boys, what have we got this evening?" Elbows went down on the counter and she took a bartender's stance with a dish towel over one shoulder. The two men in her life sashayed up to the stools and straddled them. A file was set on the counter. Danny started eating and Flack flipped open the file.

"Meet the former future of the Manhattan food scene, Alec Green, 38 years old." Lindsay with sandwich in hand and munching a bite looked closely at the photo of a dead man in a white coat on the floor but was confused. She heard them talking about the UN.

"I thought you caught a UN case."

"Oh, I did. Saturday in the city Linds, you know how it is."

She sure did and she loved it. "Good to be back." She took a closer look at the photo. "Odd corkscrew…it's inscribed with something." Flack found a photo of a close up of the weapon. "Looks like some kind of award." She looked through more of the photos.

Danny wanted to impress Lindsay. "This is where they house the million dollar grape juice." He pointed at the photos with all the wine bottles lined up.

"No kidding, this place is amazing." Flack started. "Moulton Rothschild, Montserrat, Barbaresco. The wine in this vault," he pointed out one of the overall shots, "is worth tens of thousands of dollars."

Flack has stolen Danny's thunder. "Wha do you know?"

She comforted him with a hand on his arm. "Flack, I think Danny's kind of wine is the house Chianti." But he pulled away and bee-lined it to the fridge.

"That's where you're wrong. My favorite kind of wine is beer." Instead of taking his seat, with his new frosty can, he stopped behind Lindsay. His feet widespread and wrapped around her, chin on her shoulder. "There was glass and wine spatter on the floor. The bottle was opened when it was broken, so didn't fall from the rack."

"No it came from the table in this photo." Danny filled in and pointed out.

"So there's a glass of wine, stoppered bottle… Somebody opened a bottle taste it, then may be dropped it in a struggle."

"Diameter of splatter looks like the bottle was thrown…and throwing hard." Danny handed her another photo and pointed out the detail.

Flack quietly watched the two headed, four armed monster look at the photo. They made a good team both romantically and as investigators.

"So there's a fight. Someone throws a wine bottle at your vic and then rushes the attacker." Lindsay assumed.

"And then he gets…uh…screwed to death." Danny pulled the pun.

"6.5 Mess…little shaky on the landing." Flack commented earning a smile from all around.

The three adults cleared their dinner dishes while their discussion of the case continued. Lindsay saw an opening and escaped, leaving the two boys chattering in the kitchen and tidying up. She took the file out to the pool table.

Lindsay loved puzzles. She missed taking the evidence in putting it together to make a feasible story. All the photos were spread out. The case report stated a lot of information but the photos a lot to go on. She slid them around on the green felt seeing if any of the photos might be linked together. Pieces of evidence were put together and a story emerged. Danny and flack approached.

"What exactly was the chef cooking last night?" She asked the men while holding the photo with the huge cockroach hanging out of the guy's mouth.

"Whachya got going on here, Montana?" Danny looked over the pool table and how she had the photos all laid out.

"Your Madagascar hissing cockroach was covered in 3 carats of cushion cut emeralds and rubies worth a hundred thousand dollars." She indicated from the photo and the case file.

"Get outta here. These are real stones?" Danny had hadn't had the time to really look over the details. That's why he brought the file home.

She pointed to another for photo. "This chain might have been attached; making the roach jewelry or a pet or a jeweled pet."

"A roach broach."

"Could be the next big thing. I mean isn't the cockroach kinda the unofficial mascot of New York."

"That's funny, take it easy there Mon-TAN-a." A smiled was shared between the two. "So how'd this thing end up in the chef's mouth?"

"Who does the roach broach belong to?" Lindsay questioned.

"How many people put this much 'bling' on a bug." Danny stepped away with an idea and called it into the lab.

"Lindsay, have you thought about going back to police work?" Flack looked serious. It wasn't a look that Lindsay was used to seeing on his face. "I mean you're good at this. You have made huge stride in this case in a half an hour that we have not made all day." His compliment also was unexpected. He could tell that she was thinking heavily about what he just said.

"It has crossed my mind. I thought a lot about it while I was away. I practically was back on the force when I was in Montana. But it's not my passion anymore. I miss this part; talking about a case, uncovering the evidence and following it. But I love what I do now. Whether or not I change my mind in the future, I don't know." She saw Danny coming back and quickly turned his attention to him. "So what did they say?"

"They tracked down the bug and it belonged to a Spence Evers, but I assumed that he gave it to his wife. So I will follow up on that tomorrow. What else do you have for me Montana?"

"Maybe, this is a 2003 Chateau Suzanne. This is a $500 bottle of wine."

"Uh…$650, Adam checked." Danny looked in the file.

"Since when do you know so much about wine Montana?"

"We're more that beer and buffalo burgers Messer. Scan that label tomorrow, it might be counterfeit." Flack had his notebook out and was writing down notes about what she was saying. Danny was now moving photos around to see what connections he could make. "A nipple marker, that's what it is." The pen skittered off of Flack's notebook at the comment.

"A nipple what?" Danny questioned.

"A nipple marker. They're used in mammograms to search for palpable masses. Women forget their wearing them and they wind up in the strangest of places."

"Like two feet from a dead guy?"

**

Lindsay was locking up and seeing Flack out. Danny was on another call to the lab with the information that Lindsay had come up with seeing if they would find anything out before he came in the next morning.

"Don, Danny doesn't need to know about my thoughts about possibly coming back to the department. It's never really come up in conversation. He's only known me as a teacher." She pleaded with him through his eyes. "When it comes up, it comes up. Plus, there is only one crime lab in New York, so I would be working with him. I don't know what that might do to our relationship. I've worked with people that I've dated and it never ends well."

"No problem Linds."

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_Once again you kind, loving words of adoration are welcome. But for now, I am off to write some more. It's always exciting to hear from new people and encouraging to hear from those who have stuck it out for so long. Give me a shout out folks. Review for me._


	46. Chapter 46

_DIFFERENT BEGINNINGS - BEST CSI:NY ALTERNATE UNIVERSE STORY OF 2009. _

_You nominated and voted and this story won. I am so thankful for all the readers of this story. I would have stopped long ago if there weren't readers and reviewers. It took a reviewer to point out that I won. Thank you so much to everyone. _

_This chapter drifts through the rest of the season setting things up for SNOW DAY in the next chapter. I hope that I have done them justice and have left it ready for the next chapter which should be FABOO!! ( I should know, I already written half of it.)_

_Please as always, read and review. _

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Lindsay stood next to Don Flack in a bulletproof vest behind a marked police cruiser in front of a warehouse near the water. Nine weeks ago, she returned to New York to her job and extended family, a group of people that she had come to know and love. In those nine weeks they had been through a lot of life changing events and had come closer as a family. All of that, the love, the familial unit, the bond that they formed and cherished, could be shattered that day.

Lindsay stood there in the warm spring sun and could do nothing but think.

**

**Five weeks before**

Danny called Lindsay in the middle of his shift to set up a dinner date near the lab. The case he was working on was going to keep him late at the lab. When she arrived she was a little surprised to see others there with him.

"What's going on?" She questioned.

"I let Mac know that I was going to take a dinner break and he decided to join me…and then word spread." He motioned to the three tables that were now pushed together. Mac was protectively wrapped around Peyton and Stella was talking with Hawkes and Flack.

Lindsay was horrified by the wound on Peyton's head. "Oh my, what happened to your head?" Peyton's hand went up to touch the wound as if she forgot that it was there.

"Just a job hazard." Peyton mentioned. But Lindsay could not remember any of the MEs getting hurt on the job when she was an investigator.

"She was attacked outside the lab and the body from the case that we are working was taken." Danny said it as if it happened everyday.

"And then the vic showed up in the River and in an ME's bag." Peyton stated

"And alive." Danny added.

"I'm confused." Lindsay looked at the storytellers and shaking her head.

"So are we." Mac and Danny sat at the same time.

Out of the corner of her hear she heard, "…lance, jousting, Central Park, tagimoucia flower, fingerprints, hotel, $40,000 evening, the two bodies had the same fingerprints on the eyelids." Stella was trying to talk out her case with those sitting around her.

Lindsay took a seat near Danny and relaxed than she dramatically started speaking. "Long-ago in Fiji, a little girl was punished by her mother. She ran away and got tangled in a white flowery vine." All attention was drawn to her. Flack raised a brow, impressed at the show and Stella was shocked that Lindsay knew that much, but she went on. "Her tears turned to blood and landed on the stem of the vine, turning the flower red. Thus the tagimoucia flower."

"Fiji?" Hawkes questioned.

"No, probably closer to home." Lindsay stated.

"Greenhouse." Stella guessed.

"Maybe." Lindsay supplied.

"Lots of greenhouses in New York, Lindsay." Flack made the 'well duh' statement.

"Well that's true, _Flack_, but check for impurities. It might narrow down the search." Lindsay served back in his direction.

"I'm so glad, that figuring this stuff out is their job, not mine." Flack volleyed back.

**

Mac announced that he was heading back to work and the others to decided to head back with them.

"Payton, if you need anything, call me."

"Thank you Lindsey." The two women hugged warmly.

**

**Three weeks before**

Lindsay came home after a meeting to find Danny asleep in bed. This was a very odd occurrence. Danny was a night owl and would sleep in until late afternoon if he could, but to be in bed before the late news came on, it was just strange. She figured something happened at work and she would hear about it when he woke up.

In the middle of marking report cards, the bedroom door creaked open. In a big pair of baggy sleep pants and his undershirt, the bed-headed Danny shuffled barefooted into the kitchen. He kissed the top of Lindsay's head.

"What happened today?"

A crazed laughter escaped him and it scared Lindsay a bit. He took a long drink from the orange juice carton and braced himself on the counter before the story started spilling out.

"What do you want to hear about first: how Mac went off on Adam and the rest of the lab; how at the time that Mac went off on Adam he was drawing blood from Stella for an HIV test, or how Mac might have thrown a handcuffed man off the top of the building." He just stopped and stared at her.

There were no words. She must have looked like a goldfish, her mouth opening and closing as thoughts swam around in her mind. She could not sort out what she had just heard: Stella taking an AIDS test, Mac throwing a handcuffed guy off a roof, Adam getting in trouble. What was going on over there?

"Sounds like Mac had a worse day than you did. What did Adam do to earn the wrath of Mac?"

Danny laughed again and told her the whole story about Truby, Clay Dobson, test results, and everything that went down that day at the lab.

"It was just a tough day." He moved her to the couch and laid his head in her in her lap.

"Tell me about Stella?"

"It just happened. While you were gone, she was processing a scene. She was putting a piece of bloody glass into an evidence bag. It was still wet and it just broke and cut her. She had no idea, at the time, that the vic was HIV-positive." Her hand was on his chest and was drawing patterns on the back of it and her arm. "What did the test results say?"

"It came out negative. Stella's gonna be fine."

"What made you come home and get in bed?"

"It was just a lot. The end of my shift came and went and I was tired. I was also worried for Stella and Adam."

"Not about Mac?"

"Mac's a big boy; Peyton will take care of him. Stella and Adam don't have anyone else worry about them."

**

The next morning when Stella came into the office she found a bouquet of yellow roses on her desk. There was no man in her life and she was curious to see who they were from.

"Stella, congratulations on your clean bill of health. We love you. Lindsay and Danny."

The rest of that day Stella was really nice to Danny, but she did but he didn't know why.

**

Two weeks ago

The security guards must've come to trust her and recognize her face by now because they just nodded when she signed in and put on a visitor's badge. Walking the halls of the lab she looked for Danny in all the normal places, but he wasn't in any of those; not the break room, any of the labs or even in his office.

Down the hall from where she was standing, in the direction of Stella's office, she heard a very serious Danny Messer.

"What's going on…Stella look at me…what's haunting you."

"I don't know Danny, that's the problem…I don't know." Stella sounded extremely distressed and lost.

Lindsay walked towards the sound of the voices and to the open door of her friend's office. Stella was holding a photo of her younger self and Danny sat on the couch massaging his temples.

"Hey guys." Her normal greeting was a lot more subdued than normal.

"Linds, what are you doing here?"

"When you called about working late tonight, I stopped and got dinner." She looked between her two friends in the tense office and hoped someone would fill her in. "What's going on?"

"There was a CODIS hit that connects my DNA to a 10-year-old homicide case in Philadelphia."

"Connects is as in a relative?" Lindsay knew that Stella was an orphan and that maybe it would be a distant relative and not her.

"No, my DNA, my blood."

Lindsay couldn't believe her ears. She looked at confirmation from Danny.

"Right now she is the only person they can associate to this. There was a mistake when Adam took her blood and it ended up in CODIS. An investigator has been here all day and they have been going through the evidence. He says he might consider her a suspect if the pieces don't start falling into place."

**

Danny returned home late that night to Lindsay who was waiting up.

"So?" She opened.

"We think that was a family member."

"You found a relative of Stella's?"

"Well, yes and no. I've met one of her foster care mothers and got a lead on a foster sister. The foster sister and Stella were 'blood sisters.' It gives us a possibility of how's Stella's blood got on the scene."

**

It was a few days later that Stella told the whole story about her foster father and her 'blood sister' and molestation. Stella told her about how her sister had killed him and dumped her clothes while driving in Pennsylvania. It was a huge relief; however it was also an eye opener for the team about how one little thing could come back and haunt you.

**

One week before

Lindsay showed up after school on the usual day, at the usual time, at the usual bar to find Danny and Flack at the usual table, however instead of the lively discussion, it was a sight of gloom in deep thought. Danny was nursing a drink and Flack was at the table with a very solemn look.

"Who died?"

Flack looked up from his hunched over stance. Danny just looked over his shoulder at her. Their faces did not change.

"Oh my God, who died?" She asked again, horrified about the atmosphere surrounding them.

Oh Linds, nobody died." He tried to reassure her.

"Okay what's with the doom and gloom?"

"Mac's IA review started today. We tried to help out with our testimony but what we had to say…was ignored." Flack said hitting the cue ball a little harder than normal.

"We were just talking about why we do the job?" Danny added.

"What do you mean?" She prodded.

"I was just asking Flack why we wake up in the morning, at three o'clock, stand a crime scene in the freezing cold, living paycheck to paycheck, for what to protect and serve? Serve who, the public? Sometimes it seems like they hate us and then we got the brass who's ready to throw us to the lions."

Flack again shrugged him off. "I told him that we do it because maybe we're good at it. Maybe we'd be lousy at anything else. I don't know. Maybe we do it for the one or two times somebody actually thanks us for finding their son's murderers."

"Oh, come on, you know you guys know you do it for the wonderful money, predictable hours, and how sexy you look in a bulletproof vest." She had a flirty look and was doing her best to lighten the mood.

The gloom was broken and they all started laughing.

"You know that somehow things will be just fine. You should feel honored to have worked with him. You have been great coworkers and even better friends. Stand by him and no matter what things will work out."

She was back at that bar 24 hours later celebrating all charges being dropped.

"See, I told you." She kissed and hugged Danny and gave him a pat on the back.

**

All those things from the weeks before about how they all worked together and supported each other, played in her mind as she stood with Flack behind that squad car in a bulletproof vest, the same bullet proof vest that she had joked about a week earlier so with him and Danny. She stood, wondering how in the world she could've gone from the top of the world the night before to standing in front of warehouse wondering if she would ever see Danny alive again.


	47. Chapter 47

_Hey guys, ahead of you is a long chapter. Double and then some. I wanted to get all of Snow Day into one and there was no good place to split it in half. _

_I need feedback. Reviewers are dropping off like flies again and I need to know why. It takes me hours to write a chapter, especially one of this length. It does not take long to click on the button below and let me know what you thought. Just a few words even. _

_Coming attractions: Follow up to Danny and Lindsay of what happened to the lab during Snow Day, Stella has a request for Lindsay, the end of school, rehabilitation, and Summer. _

_Please let me know why people are dropping like flies. I need to know how to stop it._

_****************************************************************************************************************************************************_

"Flack."

"Hey we just initiated contact, but there still no word on the condition of the hostages." She was angry at Flack for being able to distance himself from the situation and have the ability to call their friends hostages. It was a technique that all hostage negotiators learned in training. She hoped that it was just his way to cope, but she still hated him for it at that moment.

"But you spoke to Danny right; he's the one who called you."

The hesitation before Flack started speaking was deafening. It was something he had never done before with her. He was always blunt, always told her like it was, but this time he hesitated.

"He didn't sound good Linds." He looked around and then down at this watch. "I thought Mac would be here by now."

"There's a gas leak at the crime lab. Phones are down. Everyone's been evacuated. It's a mess." The lab was the first place she went after school. When news came in about the hostages, she left.

They both became quiet again as the wait continued.

**

Danny looked again at the sentiment on the card from the cactus that Lindsay had sent him soon after her return to New York. "You're a diamond in the rough, but you're kinda cute and loveable, I guess I'll keep you. –Montana"

How had he been so lucky to have this wonderful woman in his life? When he left her in on the pool table, he knew that he'd be in trouble for not waking her up. He called her school and informed them that she would be in late due to personal issues. He did not know if he would ever have the chance to face the music and apologize. Forcefully hitting his head against the wall of the container he was in, he ran his finger over the words again and put the card back into his wallet.

**

_24 hours earlier_

"_We have a date tonight: dinner out, movie out. I'll be ready when you get home." That was all the text stated when it came in from Lindsay, and that started one of the best nights in his life. He finished his shift and showered in the locker room before leaving. He was buttoning up his shirt and humming when Hawkes came in._

"_You're in a good mood."_

"_I've got a date tonight." Hawkes thought that Danny was way too excited._

"_With Lindsay?" The look Hawkes got from Danny made him take the question back. "You guys have been together for almost 2 years and you're acting like it's the first date, man."_

_Between the subway and their front door, he found a florist and bought a bunch of daisies. She loved flowers and he wasn't about to disappoint her on the night of a date._

_She bustled around getting ready. She'd straightened up the apartment, changed the sheets, and set a few candles around the bedroom. A knock on the door was pleasantly welcome, she was starved._

"_Detective Messer, what a pleasant surprise and flowers too. Let me just put these in some water and we can go."_

_He was able to look around the apartment for a moment and saw that she had cleaned. Down the hall he could see that pillows on the bed had clean pillowcases on them and he hoped for a memorable ending to their evening._

"_Apartment looks nice."_

"_Thanks, I spent the afternoon straightening."_

_She approached him and he got a good look at her: long jeans, heeled boots, and black camisole under a white sweater. She looked casual and yet he could see that she put a lot of thought into what she was wearing and it made his mouth water._

"_Ready?"_

"_Um…yeah." She blushed under his stare and their night began._

_She was extra flirty all night. On the train she stood with her back to the handrail and made him brace himself by holding on to the bar above. Their position had his torso to hers and she held onto him through belt lips on the front of his jeans. The train jostled when it rolled around a corner and her fingers brushed him very tenderly in precious places. She watched his eyes close at the sensation only to open moments later and find her attention drawn elsewhere. _

_At the restaurant she sat right next to him in the booth, instead of across the table, and she kept a hand high on his thigh. The waitress came by to talk to them and Lindsay's hand would slip higher or it would give a gentle squeeze, bringing all his thoughts to an end. Again when he looked over, she was in a deep conversation or looking at the menu. He tried to get her back but she was always one step ahead of him._

_At the theater, she missed the popcorn box three times and came in contact with his lap, getting a sharp intake of breath and a lustful look from him. She was teasing and touching and he was going insane. When she took a sip of their drink, her brow went up all innocent like and she worked with a straw with her lips and tongue. How could he not stare at her? She was oozing sex, and he wanted some of it._

_Instead of taking his offered arm when they stepped out of the theater her arm wrapped around him and hand slipped into his back pocket and massaged his backside._

"_What is with you tonight?"_

"_I just love you, that's all."_

"_That's all, huh?"_

"_Yup." A kiss to the side of his neck and a generous grab of his butt and he was convinced._

"_Why are we having a date in the middle of the week? Don't you have school tomorrow?"_

"_Yeah, but I'm really not teaching. I have a D.A.R.E. officer coming to talk to my kids; a few other classes have them coming to."_

"_So what do you say to a few games of pool when we get home?" _

_Lindsay had other plans for when I got home, but their past pool games had some great outcomes, why should this one be any different. "Sounds good."_

_**_

_The midnight hour was upon them and they were in the middle of their 4__th__ game. _

_From the first game, Danny won dishes duty for a week. Lindsay kicked his butt up one side and down the other and did not think twice about it. _

_From the second fame he won the honor of taking her to the next chick flick that she wanted to see and he couldn't complain one bit. _

_She got to help him on the third during the third game. She helped him find shots, got behind him and help him hold the cue and when he started to take his shot, she did something to mess him up._

_They were tired, they were giddy and then the tequila shots started when the fourth game was set up. If she hit a shot, he took a drink. If she missed a shot, she took a drink. If she hit one of his in a pocket, she took a drink. The rules worked in reverse too. He had three more shots of alcohol racing through his system than she did. He was getting tired of all the playing around and wanted to play around. He got gutsy and he was getting hungry for Lindsay. He had put down his cue stick. He saw that she was deciding on a course of action on the table. _

"_There's no way you're gonna make this shot too Montana."_

"_A Benjamin says I do." Her tipsyness slurred her words and for a second she sounded like a New Yorker. They each drank to the bet._

_He gave her the space she needed, hands on his knees he watched her line up the shot. He couldn't see the huge smile on her face. The eight rolled across the almost empty table and came to rest in the targeted pocket. She won, she owed him, and from the attitude that her body screamed, she knew it._

"_You owe me $100." She was cocky and milking the situation for all it was worth._

"_You know what?...uh you're gonna have to wait until payday." He tried to be convincing. _

"_No, you either pay me now, or you come up with something better." The daring look she had in her eyes sent him over the edge and he couldn't stand it anymore. His lips had to touch hers and they did it in an explosion. It was something that had been building all night with her touches, looks and words just adding fuel to the flame. He kissed her with all caution thrown to the wind and sucked the air from her lungs. It was frantic and needy. And it was fast and hot._

_She wanted skin beneath her hands. She wanted something to kneed and caress, so his shirt had to go. He must have had the same idea because her sweater was lost somewhere and her black camisole was peeled from her body. They embraced quickly and their skin touched briefly. A leg was lifted over his hip, her body came closer. The skin of the inside of his arm slid like silk across bare skin on her back and pulled her against him. Fire trailed down her neck as his kisses went lower. The fiery trek continued down the middle of her chest and back up with her head thrown back in passion. Not to be outdone she started her own exploratory trail down his torso. His arms went out wide and his chest puffed out giving her full access to anything she wanted. She couldn't get enough. She kept moving until she was hind him. Small hands worked the button on his pants and when she worked her lips down his spine, gravity took his jeans to the floor. Creeping around his hips the same small hands created friction on the front of his strong legs that were quivering. He reached back in search of her._

_Her clothes soon followed his and she was up on the edge of the pool table. Her love, her other half, stood in front of her. Their rapid heartbeats and alcohol worked in harmony with their emotion and lust and spiraled them out of control towards euphoria that some only find with drugs._

_A couple of pillows from the couch and a blanket from the end of the bed would suffice for the evening; she didn't want to move and was still tipsy and dizzy from the shots; spinning and flying from the love._

_**_

_A garbage truck outside was making its rounds and backing up, the tell tale beep was what woke Danny up. It took him a moment to update his brain as to where he was. A lump of messy hair covered his left shoulder. His future was asleep there. Marriage was on his mind, had been for a while. He wasn't quite ready yet, but he was thinking about it more. He knew he'd be lost without her and that they were already on the road to being together forever and he was starting to see it._

_There was no easy way to get up without waking her, so he had to find a good way to wake her up. She was too far away to kiss on the lips and from experience he learned that if he moved she just snuggled closer and fell into a deeper sleep. He settled on a poke in the nose. _

_She made the cutest face; nose and cheeks all scrunched up. She even tried to brush away whatever had poked her, and then stretched the sleep and kinks from her body. Pressure was applied in all the right places, rubbed again him and make him want to call in sick for the day and stay right there. Her eyes opened and focused on the chest she was laying on. Sunshine spread across her face in the form of a smile and her body relaxed into him._

"_Hey."_

"_Hey." He was so in love with this woman. The world could just fade away and leave them locked up in their apartment and he wouldn't mind at all._

"_What time is it?"_

"_It's early." Each movement that she made was felt as small earthquakes in his heart; each slide of her leg over his, each line drawn by her fingers._

"_I have to be at work by nine. You're lucky you got a later shift."_

"_Yeah, well don't worry, just go back to sleep. I'll wake you up." A feeling of peace covered them._

"_I dreamt that I woke up and you were gone. You left a note."_

"_Where would I go, this is my place."_

_He was too far away to see, but he swore he could hear her eyes roll. "I was hoping for a better answer."_

"_Just kidding—I'm glad this happened." He told her with a loving kiss to her forehead._

"_Me too," and she kissed whatever skin she could reach causing him to shiver. "However, I wish it had happened in our bed. I'm gonna feel this for the rest of the day." She stretched again and a few bones popped then she fell asleep._

_**_

"_Hey Mac, I heard you were looking for me." Danny raced up the stairs to catch up with his boss._

"_That's right, you're on the clock, care to tell me where you've been?"_

"_Yeah, yeah, yesterday Lindsay mentioned something about dealing with personal business, so I stopped by her school to help out with the D.A.R.E. presentations in her class."_

"_Next time give me a little heads up, alright?"_

"_Absolutely, it' my fault for not mentioning it earlier, okay? What do you need me to do?" He hoped to get back on Mac's good side, however last time he really pissed off Mac, he found Lindsay._

"_This morning's crime scene in Brooklyn, I've got Adam over there processing by himself for the last six hours. He could use some help."_

"_You got it." He felt lucky for not getting the wrath that Adam took a while back._

_**_

_He checked the address three times. The uniformed officers were not out front of the scene like usual. He parked the truck and quietly got out. He entered through them red plastic makeshift door and stopped three steps in. The uniforms were not loitering around there either._

"_Adam?" He started searching around for the quirky lab man, but he was gravely alarmed. The crime scene tape was pulled down. Danny, under gut feeling, drew his gun and dropped his kit. He started treating the scene as active and unsecured. He needed to call for back up but he needed to also check on Adam. He crept through the warehouse, checking around corners and peeking into containers; his gun extended in front of him. _

_Then he saw it: Adam's kit. It was abandoned, pieces were strewn across the floor and Adam was still nowhere in sight. _

"_Adam?" He was concerned. He was desperate. What happened?_

"_Danny." It was a sound that Danny would never forget. It made his blood run cold. "Danny look out." The world went black._

_**_

_Sleep slipped away peacefully. Sore muscles reminded her of the pleasure and passion that she shared with Danny the night before. Danny…where was he? The sore muscles became an annoyance. Sitting up she tried to gauge what time it was and where Danny might be. Seeing the clock, she started rushing around. School started hours ago and she was very late._

"_Danny, you were supposed to wake me up." It was said to no one. She gathered up the closest clothes and dressed quickly and was a little irritated at Danny. In the kitchen she found a note on the chalkboard from him in his very distinctive block handwriting. She could hear his voice as she read it: "Montana, Don't freak out, although I'm sure you already have. We're trading shifts. I got you covered. Enjoy your snow day. D-"_

_Images from the night before played again in her memory. On the counter he'd left her breakfast fixings of cereal and his favorite Giants bowl. With it was a single daisy from the bouquet last night._

_Down the hall, on the bed there was another note: "Aren't you glad we kept the pool table?"_

_A quick call to work showed her how covered she was. She had until noon to get there for her afternoon classes._

_**_

_Danny was manhandled into the back of the truck where Adam and the two uniformed officers were being held. Adam tried to help him but very angry Irish voices stopped Adam's assistance and the two men left. Danny's phone slipped out of his pocket into the fog of his head injury he started a text message. Adam noticed, the two officers noticed, all with hope in their eyes that it would go through. But the hostage takers also noticed and called out. _

_Danny braced himself. He took a blow to the back of his ribs from the heel of the boot that knocked him sideways and then the butt of a gun smashed his hand. The pain shot out his arm and all he could do was scream in agony and yell at the two men while cradling his injured hand to his body. Danny had broken bones before: an arm when he fell off the monkey bars in third grade, a leg when he fell off the top of a fence he was scaling, and his wrist during the bench clearing fight during a ball game a few years ago, however nothing felt like this. He knew it was coming but a little more hope died when they smashed his phone._

_Adam was able to help him sit upright and Danny saw Adam's hand. Danny asked about what the men wanted and the younger man told the story of how they burned with cigarettes to get information._

_**_

_Lindsay got to school with plenty of time to spare before her last class of the day. She found the D.A.R.E. officers in the teachers' lounge and recognized a few of the faces. She overheard, "yeah they had to evacuate the lab." She thought maybe someone had pulled the prank while the officers were in the school._

"_In what room?" She asked hoping that all her students had been on their best behavior in her absence and that whatever happened had occurred in someone else's room._

"_It wasn't here he was at the crime lab. Something about a gas leak nobody's been hurt that I know of." She let out a sigh of relief at hearing this information._

_**_

_Adam watched Danny tear a sleeve of his shirt and take his shield off the leather holder. The instant he saw Danny alingn his shield on the inside of his fingers, he knew what his friend was about to do. The leather went between his teeth, he braced his back against the wall, hesitated only once and did the most painful thing Adam had ever seen anyone do: Danny straightened his broken fingers and secured them to his badge with the torn strips of his shirt._

_The leather fell from between his teeth and the words that came out of Danny's mouth next confused Adam._

"_Adam, what do you have in your kit buddy?" The words were said with pure focus._

"_What… what are you talking about my… my kit is way over there." Adam hoped Danny wasn't about to do something stupid._

_Through gritted teeth of pain and frustration as he tied the makeshift splint tighter he said, "just tell me what you have in there."_

_Adam had just repacked his kit that morning and could remember each item. "um… presumptive blood test, lift kit, stuff to cast with, uh… narco test kit…"_

"_Test kit, test kit… that's good… that means you got Marquis reagent and it contains sulfuric acid." His eyes went wide like it was Christmas morning. "I'm gonna need you to go get it."_

_**_

_Lindsay couldn't get to the lab quick enough that afternoon after school. He wasn't picking up when she called. He didn't respond when she texted and she was worried that he'd gotten mixed up in the gas leak drama. She spotted Sid and Peyton standing on the sidewalk._

"_Hey guys this is crazy, what's going on?"_

_Sid gave her an odd look and questioned, "hey, what are you doing here?"_

"_School got out and I figured I'd come down. I heard about the gas leak from the officers at school. Where's Danny?"_

"_Hawkes told me he was processing the warehouse from this morning's drug bust with Adam."_

_**_

_It took some convincing to make Adam understand that these guys need them alive and as hostages._

"_I know you're afraid, but so am I. But you are going to get it, you understand me?" Danny didn't know who he was pumping up more Adam or himself. He knew this was going to hurt._

"_Okay… but how… how my supposed to…"_

_Danny was out of the truck before he could finish his thought. "scumbags." He turned the corner, drawing the two thugs away from the field kit giving Adam enough time to get to the kit and find what he was looking for. Adam ignored the grunts and groans from Danny as he searched. Danny took a gun but to the face and ribs on the same side he was kicked. Adam found what he was looking for and high tailed it back to the truck. He heard Danny's mouth off again and take another hit to the face._

_Danny was hurting, he hoped unconsciousness would take him from all this but to his surprise his captors made another request._

"_You're gonna make a phone call. You're gonna call the man who led the little raid this morning and let him know we've got you."_

_They requested the number to dial into their phone. He was so tempted to give them Lindsay's number so that he could hear her voice, but the thought left him and he gave from Flack's phone number. The ringing on the other end of the line gave him another glimmer of hope._

"_Yeah, Detective Flack."_

_Between the pain and the not knowing what was next he started a conversation, "hey Don… yeah it's Messer, we got a problem man we got a problem."_

_The ass holes took the phone from Danny as he wavered between dizzy spells. He called Flack and alerted him to the situation at the warehouse but the other two finished the conversation._

_** _

_Cars flew by Sid Payton and Lindsay with lights and sirens. Again Lindsay asked her question, "this is crazy, what's going on now?"_

"_I just heard mention of a hostage situation at the warehouse."_

"_Wait, wait… the warehouse, the same warehouse from this morning… the same one where Danny and Adam are?" Lindsay needed clarification and panic hit._

"_Yes, that would be the one." Payton nodded in confirmation and Lindsay was gone. She was trying to flag down any squad car that was heading that way but ended up in a taxicab instead. The cops that knew her got her onto the scene. Accepting to wear a vest got her to Flack._

_She came out of her thoughts of the previous 24 hours and tried to focus on what was going on in front of her._

**

Danny knew things could go bad, he heard faint sounds of the Irish gunmen talking to Flack on the walkie-talkie. He took up a card that Lindsay and sent him at the cactus and read her words over and over. He wanted to desperately be back on that pool table holding her close and feeling her body touching his. If he got out of this with his life he wouldn't be doing much physical activity for a long while. He might not be doing much of anything. Loving her might have to be done from afar for a while.

Hearing the voices raise he knew things were escalating. He tucked her note back into his wallet and waited.

One of the gunmen got a message from someone on a walkie-talkie that wasn't NYPD and he called for the uniformed officers. Danny and Adam watched as they were put in the coveralls and guns were strapped to their hands. With the drug dealers busy out of sight, Adam tossed the bottle of acid to Danny.

They made contact with Flack on the outside, Danny knew it was about to blow up, and one of the guys jumped in the container truck and went after him. He splashed the Irishman in the face with the foul liquid and hit him with everything he had left. The other guy tried to enter the truck and Danny shot the legs out from under him.

There was lots of noise. Danny was dizzy again and missed some of the action, but he heard Adam identify the faux gunman as cops, and then Flack's voice. He maneuvered to the end of the trailer. There he saw an angel coming towards him and he thought he had died. But then the angel spoke.

"Danny, oh my God, oh my God, Danny." Lindsay had ever seen anybody got beat up and live to tell about it.

"Lindsay." It was grunted.

Flack came close. "Hey."

"I'm good."

"You don't look good. Let's get EMS over here."

"I'll take him." She felt him lean heavily on her as they headed towards the ambulance where Adam was.

Passing out was becoming a very valid option but before he succumbed he had one more thing to say, "I love you."

She looked into his eyes and saw unshed tears. His eyes were a deeper blue and clearer than she'd ever seen them.

"I love you too, baby."

Danny fell asleep in transit to the hospital.

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_The little button at the bottom, click it and tell me you loved it. Tell me what you want to happen over the summer._


	48. Chapter 48

_Hi peoples! Just to let you know, this chapter wrote itself. I could see the whole thing clearly._

_laurzz - I did love writing the last chapter. I put a lot of work into it. I work very hard watching the episodes over and over to get all the little details and make something big out of them. Thank you for the kind words._

_ladyofthedragons1 - I had to get that note in there somehow. It tied the whole episode together and made their whole evening seem like so much more than a casual thing to him._

_Flicia89 - I like Lindsay in the lab also. There might be more to come..._

_Lis92 - I never get tired of hearing "I liked it," "Good chapter," "Keep Writing." It lets me know who is still out there and reading the story. Hint hint hint._

_suncalibeach04 - Thank you so much for your wonderful encouraging words. I need all the help I can get. Keep reading and let me know you are out there every once and a while._

_egoofy34 - I understand about reading on your phone. That is the only place that I read webpages and at . I have spent a lot of time figuring out to do about Rikki and that whole situtation. Something will happen, I just dont know what yet._

_CreggaFoeseeker - You have never seen the episode SNOW DAY? Where are you? I need to send it to you some how and let you see it. I'll be working on that. _

_court99274 - Thank you so much for reading and sending me a note. It makes my day._

_natabrains - I'm glad that you approve. I knew that SNOW DAY was coming up and I needed to make a big deal about it (since its one of my favorites too), and I'm excited that you enjoyed it._

_FoxPhile - Good to see you, missed you there for a while. Summer should be interesting and a whole lot of fun, look out for summer trips, 4th of July (in Bozeman maybe?), and his eagerness to get back to work._

_york - I love Lindsay being a teacher, its easy to write about from experience. Plus it just worked in my mind._

_afrozenheart412 - I have read a lot of the CSI NY fanfiction and it amazed me that no one else mentioned the way Lindsay talked when she was playing pool with him in the episode. It caught my ear the first time I saw it. Thank you for your words about the imagery that I used. It's something that I play with that I think I am just getting the hang of and still have a lot of room to grow. I also thank you for the suggestions for what comes next. A few you might recognize as you read._

_csifan35 - You love it. Thank you, I love writing it for people who look forward to reading it. And you're awesome for hanging on this long._

_**Please know that I read every comment and pull everything I can from them to help make the story as good as I can. Keep them coming even if they just say "love it" "great chapter" "Look forward to each one." What you write does not matter to me as long as you are still enjoying what you read, just let me know.  
_

_Two chapters ago, I wrote about four different episodes which covered four weeks of time, the majority of this chapter deals with about only twelve hours._

_Enjoy, and give me some feedback. _

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Whenever a police officer goes into the hospital with an on the job injury, there is always pages and pages of paperwork that someone has to fill out. They always ask for the same information over and over: name, address, birth date, blood type, medical history.

Danny and Adam were taken back to a curtain area. It was a fight just to get Danny to take the ride to the hospital in the ambulance. He wanted to go home. He had wanted to be anywhere but on his way to the hospital. Upon arrival it was figured out that Lindsay was not a cop, was not a family member, and was not his emergency contact person. She was not allowed to go back with Danny. The nurse kept apologizing and saying something about a new HEPPA law. Ten minutes after he was taken back the same nurse returned with a stack of paperwork.

"Detective Messer's hand was smashed and he's been sedated lightly because he really wanted to leave and he picked a fight with both nurses and the doctor. Could you fill it out?" Without waiting for an answer, she dropped the clipboard in Lindsay's lap and turned and left without another word.

She was annoyed at the nurse and frustrated about herself and Danny. Why haven't they changed his emergency contact to her? There would need to be a time at some point where they would need to visit this issue, but it wasn't today. With nothing better to do, she turned to the paperwork. She was full name and filled out on every sheet. She knew his birth date and home address. She knew who his employer was and who his insurance carrier was. But the rest, she was horrified and embarrassed that she didn't know anything else about his medical history. She had no clue what his blood type was, whether or not he had many surgeries in the past, or if there was any family history of diseases, heart conditions or anything like that. She was not even sure if he had any food or medical allergies. Other than the cold that he had last winter he had been healthy since they met. Quickly thinking she called his mother.

"Hey Mama, um I need some information about Danny."

"Sure sweetie what can I tell you." She sounded like the typical sweet mother wanting to help out, only with a thick New York accent.

Lindsay wasn't sure how to ask for the information she needed to know without making Danny's mom panic. "Um, I need to know any family medical problems: heart conditions, medical issues, anything that might be hereditary."

"No… nothing that that would be significant enough for me to mention why?" His mother sounded a little suspicious at her request.

Lindsay ignored the tone in the question and continued her inquiry. "Does any have any food or medical allergies?"

"No, not that I know of." Lindsay scribbled down the answer on all the sheets that asked that specific question and looked for another thing to ask.

"What's Danny's blood type?"

"O+, what's going on, are you filling out a medical survey for something? Why can't you ask him?" There was a long pause on the other end of the phone and then a sharp intake of breath. "Sweetheart, are you pregnant?"

"No!" It was said more forcefully and loudly than she had wished and without thinking she started talking. "No, Danny's in the hospital sedated and it left me to be the one fill out all the paperwork and all the forms and I did not have all the information so I had to call you." Lindsay did not take a single breath while saying all that and rushed everything that came out of her mouth to change the older lady's mind on the other end of the phone.

The screeching and panicked voice on the other end of the phone made it extremely hard to answer any of the questions that were being fired at her. "Hospital… first Louie…now Danny…why sedated…what happened…where are you…oh my Lord…hey honey."

"Mama…" Mama Messer was still rambling but it was becoming fainter and fainter.

"Lindsay Honey, what's going on?" The calm cool collected voice of Danny's dad came through the phone.

"Danny's in the hospital, he's been sedated because he is being a pain in the ass to the doctors and the nurses. He was taken hostage and beaten up today in Brooklyn, but he's going to be fine. I just need information for the paperwork."

"Alright honey, tell me where you are and will be right over."

She gave them the information and hung up. She stared at the phone. Did his mom really think that she was pregnant? There wasn't any time to ponder this because Detective Donald Flack walked in.

"Linds, you waitin' on a phone call?" He looked at her strange as she started at the phone.

"Um, no, I just got off the phone with Danny's parents and they're on their way."

"Why are you staring at your phone?"

"No reason really." She put it away. "How's the lab?"

"A little blown up." He had just enough time to tell her all about the explosion and how it was the ending the event of a plot to steal back the cocaine from a drug raid on the warehouse. As he finished his story Stella came in to check on both Danny and Adam. She was allowed to go back to see the two men.

Flack and Lindsay smiled each other because they could hear her returning before they saw her.

"Mac's going to London, Adam's working one-handed for at least four weeks, Danny's out for at least 10 weeks, the lab's been blown up, what in the hell am I to do? I have got evidence to sort through that might have been contaminated. I've got current cases that people are out investigating right now. And I'm _now_ three people short." Stella seemed frazzled and didn't know where to start. Her rant continued in that Lindsay just could only be Greek because she was not understandable and gesturing wildly. In a Huff she sat in a chair near them.

"Stella how is Adam and Danny? They won't let me back to see them."

"That will be fixed as soon as Danny gets out of surgery."

"Surgery, what's in surgery for?" Her cool calm exterior was starting to fade.

"They are fixing all the bones and tendons in his hand. The drug dealers did quite a job on him. Along with numerous broken bones in his hand, he has three cracked ribs. He'll be out of the field for at least ten weeks. He might be able to come back to a desk job in about seven or eight. He has hours of physical therapy to log and the department psychiatrist to see before returning back to work."

"Danny will love that." Flack commented from experience.

"How's Adam?" Lindsay knew the young man didn't have family in the state and she was concerned.

"He was tortured for information. They burned the palm of his hand with cigarettes. He's got burns to his hands, and cuts and bruises all around his face. He'll have a more of a mental healing to do before coming back to work. He'll be released tonight, but they're keeping Danny overnight for observation because of the sedation."

Lindsay was itching to get back and see Danny but knew that he wasn't back there to see. Again she heard the voices before the arrival, but Danny's parents had arrived. The story of the day's events were retold one more time. Everyone learned a little more about what was happening when they weren't around and his parents were horrified.

**

Flack and Stella left. Lindsay and Danny's parents went up to the surgical waiting room.

"Lindsay, I'm so sorry that I jumped to the conclusion that I did on the phone." She hadn't even seen that Mama Messer had moved into the seat next to her. Last time she knew she was hovering around the window staring out at the traffic and holding up paper cup of coffee in her hands waiting to hear news about her son.

"It's alright. I'm sorry for my reaction after you asked. I was just taken off guard."

"No worries dear, not that I wouldn't be opposed to getting a phone call at that someday." Lindsay blushed at the suggestion and then her mood clouded. Danny would be 'out of order' for a while, so any actions, if done foolishly, that might make a baby, wouldn't be happening anytime soon.

"Are you here for Danny Messer?" all three heads turned to the door to look at a nurse. "He's being moved to a room you can see him now." Everyone gathered their items, and then moved to follow the nurse down the hall.

His face was all bruised and puffy. The left side looked as if it had taken all the pounding. He looked much different laying there without his glasses. Lindsay would have to get his spare pair from his locker at the lab. He was asleep, but it wasn't a peaceful, deep sleep; it was a medically induced and he really wasn't getting any rest from it. His bandaged hand was laid out over a pillow at his side like a sacred object in a museum display on velvet. Words weren't spoken; the three of them just stood there and stared.

Lindsay was the first to move. She brushed his forehead with her lips and softly ran her fingers through his hair. She held his good hand in hers and stood at his bedside. The doctor came in and filled them in about what they had found. Even the doctor was surprised at his good condition, taking into account that he'd been violently hit in one way or another about half a dozen times.

The doctor left the room and Danny's parents left soon after, promising to come back and relieve Lindsay at some point during the next day.

**

Somewhere in the wee small hours of the morning his hand slipped from where she was holding it and into her hair. She'd fallen asleep with her head resting near their hands. His fingers slipped through her hair as if they were strands of pure silk. Her curls naturally twirled around his fingers.

A small, quiet, contented sigh escaped from her at the feeling of his touch and he didn't need to open his eyes to know that she was waking up. He'd heard that sound so many times when she fell asleep at night. It was like the whisper of the night and it was a healing sound. She sat up slowly and rubbed the Sandman from her eyes.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" It was said with a soft smile on her lips and concern in her eyes. She took his hand back in hers.

"I'll feel a whole lot better once you kiss me." She brushed her hair from his forehead before their lips met gently.

His tired, sleepy, painful voice quietly asked, "How's Adam?"

"They released him, he had a few burns to his hand and a few cuts and bruises but he'll be fine." She kept smoothing her fingers through his hair and his eyes stayed close listening to her soothing voice.

"They're going to flip, but we need to call my parents. They'll kill me if I wait too long to tell them about all this."

"Already done, your mother thought I was pregnant when I called". This caused his eyes to snap open and in the last twelve hours she'd never seen anything as beautiful as his blue eyes looking back at her. "Hey handsome."

"Why did my mom figure having my bambino?"

She relayed the story to him about the phone call, medical questions, and so on. The story had to stop when he started laughing and he got a sharp pain in his side.

"Okay, that's enough of that, you have a few more hours of sleep before the doctor start the rounds and release you from this place. Since I unexpectedly took the morning off yesterday, I should be at work at 9 AM. Flack or Stella will be here to take you home." He nodded in acceptance and looked toward his bandaged hand for the first time.

"Will I ever play the piano again?"

She was shocked, completely shocked, "I didn't know you played."

"It was years ago, at my great aunts house, and it was really banging, not playing. Will this make me play any better?"

"No, but it will earn you ten weeks paid vacation, physical therapy, and other fun and prizes."

He drifted back to sleep and she slipped out of the room and went home to prepare for school.

**

He was really enjoying his time off. Along with the pain he suffered because he refused to take any pain medication, he got to sleep as late as he wanted, stay up as late as he wanted, never had to get off the couch, and spent a lot more time with Lindsay. He was absolutely loving it.

NOT!!!

She left early and he couldn't get back to sleep. Because he would get up really early, he was in bed by 11 PM at the very latest. He did get to sit on the couch all day but found out very quickly that there was nothing on TV to watch. He _did_ get to spend a lot more time with Lindsay, but from afar. She was always concerned about holding him to tight or bumping into him and causing pain. She barricaded herself away from him at night with a fortress of pillows and went as far as to offer to sleep on the couch. Her kisses were gentle and quick. She braced herself on something other than him when she leaned in to give him kisses and give him a wide berth whenever he started moving around the apartment.

All this and he'd only been home for three days so far.

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_Feed the feedback monster!!!_


	49. Chapter 49

_Garage sale is over, the first week of my summer is over. I am now back and focused on getting back to writing. This chapter is full of twists and turns. Please read and give me some feedback for the next chapter. _

_Can you believe that the next chapter is number 50. I want my gold watch or something._

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It showed up on the fridge. It was there one day when she came home from school. She really didn't think much of it. To tell the truth, she really hadn't noticed it at first. It was only when she closed the refrigerator door while she was starting to make dinner that she noticed it. It was nothing big at first, maybe just a grocery list or a "honey-do" list, but upon closer inspection the ordinary piece of yellow lined paper (that must've come from her legal pad) started have a deeper meaning. There was no heading across the top of the paper and the words were almost unreadable, but due to past years and years of reading students chicken scratch, she could read the words: write, ride my bike, play pool. She laughed.

"Are these the things you can't wait to do when you get your cast and brace off?" She turned away from the fridge and continued the dinner preparation.

"No." She waited for further explanation but got none, plus something was up. There was no animation in his answer. Squinting her brow she looked again at the list and tried to pull more information from it, but got nothing.

"Okay…then what is this?" She got nothing. "Danny?"

Forcefully he pushed up from the couch, forgetting his ribs and then held his side as he came into the kitchen.

"This, my dear, is a list of things that I have found I can't do with only one hand or with the wrong hand." The words were sharp, bitter, and depressed. He was moody again. She figured that cabin fever, lack of any kind of activity and pain had been taking its toll. She didn't know what to do for him. They worked silently to make, eat, and cleanup from dinner. He drank a beer, that she'd opened for him, and watched SportsCenter and went to bed.

**

Days passed, the first week of June came along and the list grew. Other items were added: work, play catch with Ruben, shoot my gun, make Lindsay happy, play video games. She backed up and read the list again. "Make Lindsay happy?" She read it three times before she could believe he'd actually written it down. She was mad.

With paper in hand she stomped down the length of the living room to where he was laying on the couch and watching TV.

"Are you kidding me?"

He really didn't pay much attention to her other than where she was standing. "Hun, can you move over a bit?"

The remote was pulled from his hand and thrown down the hall. The back must've come off because she could hear the batteries roll on the hardwood floor. She shut off the TV manually by pulling the plug from the wall.

"There, do I have your attention now?"

"Uh." That was all he got out. She was just getting started.

"Good. What's this crap on your list about making me happy?"

"Uh. He'd never seen her like this. There was fire in her eyes and it wasn't love or passion; it was anger.

"You don't think you can make me happy with only one hand? You think that two-handed Danny Messer is the only thing that's been keeping me around here? Please, give me more credit than that. What you thinking when you wrote this?"

"I was thinking…"

"Wrong, you weren't thinking or you wouldn't have written it in the first place. What makes you think that it's yours responsibility to keep me happy? You think you are the only happiness in my life? I have friends, family, job and lots of other things. My world doesn't revolve around you."

She was so into her monologue that she didn't notice that she was pacing or that he was trying so hard not to laugh at her. Here she was angry as a hornet, ranting and spitting nails about her being happy in the most angry tone she could find. But she must've noticed because the pacing stopped and she was glaring.

Then he had to open his mouth and with a smile said, "so this is you being happy?" Sarcasm that had been missing for the past few weeks was peeking through.

A little softer she made as simple request, "why did you write this?"

"You've been taking care of me, you haven't seemed happy, so I tried to do the laundry. It's very hard in a long drawn out process to do with one hand so I gave up." Lindsay scribbled something on the paper. "I tried to wash the dishes but you can't hold a plate and wash it at the same time, so I gave up." Lindsay wrote some more. "I tried to do those things to put you in a better mood."

"Yours hasn't been much better there, Sparky so watch it."

"Kiss me." It was more of a demand than anything, the statement was a dare. It was unexpected and left her very confused.

"What?"

"Kiss. Me. It's not that difficult." He sat up, threw his legs over the edge of to the floor and dared her with the eyes and position.

She didn't hesitate to give his lips a pack.

"Okay, now sit on the coffee table right here." He patted the spot right in front of him. "And kissed me."

She did as she was told and put pressure on his almost healed torso and went in for another quick kiss. But that's not what he had in mind. Their lips almost met, but his good arm yanked her from the table and she fell in front of him onto the floor. She sat upon her knees and her whole body was inches from his. His arm prevented her from escape.

"See, no problems, so unless you tripped and bruised your lips today, kiss me."

She tried to give them the same gentle kiss that she'd given since his arrival home from the hospital, but it wasn't happening. This was his hunger satisfied with her lips. This was a week of barely touching, barely kissing, barely anything coming to an end. He feasted on her with lips parted and tongues dueling.

She didn't know what to do with her hands. Fists opened and closed at her sides they came to rest on top of his thighs and the lip embraces doubled in energy. One hand held her behind the head, but she was able to still able to pull away.

"I'm happy, they are you satisfied?"

Out of breath and staring at her, "for now."

She walked away. He saw his list on the table, and scratched out was "keeping Lindsay happy;" added were "do the laundry" and "wash dishes."

**

"Going to meet Stella for coffee."

He read it again and wondered why she hadn't mentioned anything about him joining them.

**

Lindsay was confused. Stella said nothing about Flack joined them. If she had known he was coming, she would've had Danny meet them and she told them so.

"We wanted to talk to you alone." Stella told her.

"Okay." She was very wary

"You only have one week of school left right?" Stella asked.

"Yeah?"

"Would you be interested in working at the lab temporarily? It's been almost a month since the explosion and we're still backlogged and criminals don't stop just because of the NYPD setback. And I heard that you are nostalgic for detective work."

A hard stare was thrown at the guilty looking Flack. "What? She asked me if I knew anyone who had a background in police or lab work. Besides you told me not to talk to Danny about it you never said anything about not telling Stella."

"Okay…what are you asking me?" She shook her head, trying to wrap her mind about what she was being asked.

"I'm asking you would you like to spend your summer in the crime lab. Nothing out in the field, just lab work. With Mac gone and Adam and Danny injured, I need some help. I have job interviews with a couple other people in the next few days also to help fill up the gaps." She paused for a moment and saw that the younger woman was deep in thought. "All of your certifications are good for two years, there's nothing to do other than come in and work. And the re-certifications that you would need to do what only happen if you decided to go out in the field."

"It would only be for the summer?" Lindsay questioned.

"It would be until all the guys get back or when you're tired of it." Stella replied within no-nonsense tone.

"I'll have to think about it and talk it over with Danny."

"Of course."

"So why are you here?" She focused on Flack for the first time in a while.

"I knew you would come after me since I dropped your name to Stella. I was here to save you a trip to my place to hunt me down and I got to have coffee with two beautiful women." He bounced his brows over his blue eyes and sipped his drink.

"Can I let you know Thursday or Friday?"

"Sure that be great." Stella replied to her.

**

Goodbyes were said. She texted Danny that she was on her way home, but that she was going to walk it. She wanted to think. There were four days left of school. Past 3 PM on Friday, she had no plans on a calendar until the Tuesday after Labor Day when school started again. There was no summer school for her and she had this crazy idea to do nothing all summer. It was an extra perk that Danny would be home during at least four weeks with her. It hit her. If he only had 4 to 6 weeks left and she would only have to work those weeks and then have a fair amount of her summer left. This sounded good to her. She could do a little science work, make some extra money and still have a little of her summer. It sounded good, maybe too good. Her rhythmic stroll stopped. What had she missed? She racked her brain, she tried to think it all through, but saw no downside to what Stella had proposed. Clutching her bag tighter over her shoulder, her walk continued and her thoughts did too.

**

Not much could stop the robotic walk she fell into between the coffee shop and the hallway in front of their apartment. She had been so deep in her own world it was a miracle she didn't get run over while she was walking or crossing the street. She didn't remember unlocking the door to the building or pushing the button to call the elevator. She didn't remember the 'ding' when she arrived on her floor when the doors opened onto her hallway. The only thing that snapped her from her thoughts was a sound coming from her apartment. It was something she had never heard and she was eager to find out who the unfamiliar light giggly laugh was coming from and why it was in her and Danny's apartment.

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_Feedback please._


	50. Chapter 50

_The story is over the hill!!!! I've made it to 50!!! _

_I have to apologize for the time between posts. Still working on that._

_Enjoy reading and there is still more to come._

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Danny was flying high. He got great news from the doctor, he was feeling good and school was almost out for summer. Lindsay was about to be home with him every day. She wasn't going to be teaching summer school. On the way home from his appointment, he planned a night out in his head; he was going to take her out for dinner, a nice long walk and maybe, after weeks and weeks of long distance loving, maybe they would make love.

Then the text came in.

He was sitting on the couch, practically waiting for her to walk through the front door. He'd gotten a haircut, shaved, dressed in his best jeans and white shirt and was just waiting for her to come through the door from school. Instead his phone chirped and he read a text starting that she was meeting Stella and nothing was said about him meeting them.

His high flying mood crashed. Lindsay would not be hungry once she got home, so his dinner plans went out the window. She probably wouldn't want to go back out once she was home, even to go for a romantic walk with him. And the rest of the night, who knows.

He did have another option. He grabbed his phone and dialed.

"Hey, you have time to come show me that thing that you do that you were talking about the other day?"

After hanging up he knew he had at least an hour's worth of entertainment.

**

Lindsay stared at the front door to her apartment. It was the same door that she'd been coming home to for almost a year now. It was the same green peeling paint that had always been there. The numbers had not changed on it since she left that morning for school, so she knew she was in the right place. The same cheesy generic welcome mat that she and Danny had picked out was still there on the floor. It was the same door. She stood in the hall and stared at it as if it held all the answers of the best kept secrets. She listened and kept hearing someone giggle and laugh from just beyond the barrier. Her keys dangled from her hand and she clutched the strap of the bag over her shoulder as she leaned towards the door.

Five minutes ago she arrived home from hearing an offer from Stella to work in the lab a bit over the summer. She was still deep in thought when the sound of someone else in their apartment happened. Her rusty detective skills kicked in. She leaned in and listened close.

"Lindsay?"

Did the door just call her name? She stood back and stared wide-eyed at the door.

"Lindsay?"

She only turned her head to look down the hall to where the noise came from on her right, and it came from a familiar face.

"Rikki, haven't seen you in a while, everything okay?"

"Yeah, you locked out?"

"No, just deep in thought."

"I guess I should ask you the same thing, everything okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good." She paused and thought of all the things that she could talk to her about and get an opinion on. But Lindsay really wanted to get rid of her and get in the apartment to see what was happening in there. "What's up?"

"I came to get Ruben. He's late getting home for dinner."

"Ruben's here…with Danny?"

"Yeah."

Every ounce of Lindsay that was tense and on guard relaxed. She unlocked the door and pushed it open to reveal the back of Danny and Ruben. Danny sat, sleeves rolled up, in front of the computer. He was animatedly clicking on the mouse. Lindsay couldn't see the screen, but Ruben was standing behind him and laughing at whatever he was doing.

Lindsay drew Rikki's attention to the counter, where two half empty pizza boxes were sitting. "I think Ruben ate dinner already. Hang out and we can talk while the boys play." They locked the door behind them and sat at the counter and were there for about ten minutes before either of the other two in the apartment noticed their presence.

"Hi mom."

Danny's head whipped around to see the two women sitting at the counter eating what was left of their dinner.

"Hello Ladies." And the classic Messer smile was flashed at them.

**

Their evening was wonderful. They all visited and talked. Danny and Ruben huddled around the computer and continued to play for a few more hours before Rikki ended the night.

Danny and Lindsay straightened up the kitchen after their guests left. Pizza boxes found their way to the garbage and glasses were washed and placed in the strainer to dry overnight. They worked in comfortable silence for a while until Lindsay spoke.

"You have fun tonight?"

"Yeah, Ruben told me about a website the other day that he goes to with games that are only played using the mouse. It's no Madden with Flack on the weekends, but it's a nice change from just watching TV and surfing the internet aimlessly."

"Good, how was the doctor today?" She saw his mood visibly change. He got happier just at the reminder from her. His eyes darkened and he slowly moved across the kitchen. "What?" She skeptically asked.

"The doctor gave my ribs an all clear." She digested the news, then she was hugging him; there was no guarded response, no wince of pain. The efforts were doubled and a contented groan that she hadn't heard for a while rumbled from his chest.

"What else did he say?" Her embrace never let up.

"I'm starting physical therapy next week. The brace and cast will be replaced with something less constructive to allow for more movement. In four to six weeks I will be back in the lab and then he thinks another two to four weeks after that, I might be able to be back on full duty." He was excited about the news. She could tell by his rate of speech in the tone.

"You still have the psychologist to see." It was just a gentle reminder.

"I know, I know. I'll do it one week soon when I go to visit the lab. I've seen 'em before and Adam said it was not bad."

"When did you talk to Adam?" He hadn't mentioned having any contact with the young man since the day of the drug raid.

"I talked to him this mornin' before the doc. I was trying to call Flack and must've hit the wrong button or somethin'. We talked for a while, he sounds like he is doing well."

"Good." He and Adam lived through something together, survived something together and they were finally talking about. She was internally thrilled for him, really for both of them. The day had a very eventful. She felt a great relief having a flexible sort of schedule of when he might be back to work.

"How was Stella?"

"Stella _and_ Flack or fine."

"You met with both and I didn't get an invite?"

"Stella had a proposition for me and Flack was there to save me the effort of hunting him down."

She was moved out of his embrace and held at an arm's length. The most quizzical look from come from him. He looked at her as if anything he wanted to know about the afternoon could be easily answered.

"In a conversation I had with Flack, I mentioned missing my old job." She tried to smooth the hurt on his face with her next comment. "You were sedated at the time and it was supposed to be just a ramble kept between the two of us. Anyway Flack mentioned it to Stella and it just went from there."

He still looked a little confused. "What just went from there?"

"Okay, Stella asked me to meet her for coffee to offer me a temporary position in the lab until everything gets back to normal or until school starts." She could see it start to set in.

"So what did you tell her?" He crossed his arms in front of him the best he could.

She mirrored his stance. "I told her I had to talk to you about it first and I would get back to her by Thursday or Friday."

He pondered. She couldn't decide if it was the unfocused gaze or the tugging at his chin that gave him away. She couldn't read anything that was going on in his head. What was he thinking? Was he thinking it was an awful idea? Was he still confused about something?

"Why do you need to talk to me about this?"

"Um…" The question threw her off. "It was just a natural thought. I wouldn't make a decision like this on my own. Your opinion matters to me. I want to know what you think."

"I thought you were going to visit your parents for a week over the 4th of July."

"I can still do that, just later in the summer."

"You became a teacher to get away from police work."

"And I'm still a teacher. I'm just working a second job during my time off." She told him. To her it sounded as if didn't like the idea of her working over the summer or maybe he didn't like the idea of her working the job again.

"Is it lab and field or just lab?"

"I am still current for lab work only." She gave the information as if she were a teenage daughter trying to convince her father of something. With each new addition of information he thought again.

"I say go for it if it sound goo to you." She was wrapped instantly in his body, letting her feel comfortable with any decision that she made. She was excited and giddy about what would happen over the next few weeks.

**

To: SBonesara

From: LMonroe

Subject: I'll take you up on your offer

Date: June 14, 2007 – 1:46AM

Stella,

I wanted to let you as soon as the decision was made that I would like to work in the lab this summer. I will stay and work until things calm down and go back to normal. I do have a request. I would like the 3rd, 4th and 5th of July off for a trip that I have planned already to Montana to visit my parents. Please get in touch with me about when you want me to start. Thank you for the offer.

Lindsay.

She reread the message again before hitting send. After a night of lovin' from Danny, the first in weeks, she went to the kitchen for a glass of water and passed the computer. She could not resist sending out a quick message to her friend about the exciting adventure she was about to take. She slipped back into bed next to the greatest thing that had ever happened to her and fell asleep.

**

There were no sniffles, no tears, there weren't even any long gazes out the train windows remembering moments from the year past, on the last day of school this time around. She loved her kids and felt honored to have been a part of their lives. But she knew that they needed to go on and she needed to work with the next year's group and that the cycle would continue year after year.

All her stuff was stored away like the previous year, desk was cleared off and the walls were made bare. Her room was ready again for a fresh start in the fall. As she had done the year before, she stopped into the main office to turn in her keys and did other end of the year check out stuff.

By stepping out onto the front steps, her school job was put on hold and in two days she'd start her summer job.

**

Stella met her at the front desk of the lobby with Hawkes, Flack, Angell and Sid on Monday morning. The guards tried to give her a visitor's badge, but Stella waved them off.

"She's going to personnel for a real ID, gentlemen. She works here now."

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_Please feed the feedback monster. Feedback feeds the writer and makes the pen go faster._


	51. Chapter 51

_I am going to go see Gary Sinise in Illinois play with the Lt. Dan Band in July. I am kinda excited about it. _

_Anyway, here ya go. _

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He bustled around the apartment all day. He was full of nervous energy and wanted to know all about how her first day went. He wanted to know how everyone was. He wanted to know how things were going. He wanted to know how repairs were coming along. Sure, he could have asked anyone for all of this information but he always got the same kind of answers: "You're supposed to be healing, don't worry about the lab" or "You'll be back soon enough you'll see."

But time and healing were not happening fast enough. He was a very impatient person when it came to these types of things. He wanted to be better, he wanted information, he wanted to be back on the job, and he wanted these things right now.

**

She was dead on her feet. Lab work included a lot more standing, hunching over, and concentration than teaching. It was a lot more tedious, detailed and slow. She dealt with evidence like a robot: open, process, get results, and file them away, open, process, get results, and file them away. She did this over and over all day long. She found a good stopping point and headed to the break room for a hot refill on her coffee. She was too busy thinking about what she needed to do, that she missed the cup and spilled it all over the counter. A paper towel magically appeared over her shoulder. A glance behind her provided the identity to the good Samaritan: Stella.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

"My feet haven't touched the ground since I clock in."

"Welcome to the crime lab."

"If I remember correctly, in Montana, they gave us breathing breaks."

Stella saw the tiredness in her friend's eyes. "Let me give you a little tip: protein bars, comfortable shoes and at least four hours of sleep a night."

"Well that's not going to help me today. I'll try your advice tomorrow. There's so much to do. I'm sure you want it done now."

"No, I want it done right. That's all that matters."

"Well, I just don't want to slow things down."

Stella couldn't believe her ears. Lindsay was doing her, Mac, and the city a huge favor. "Hey, in the McGinty killings, the Bozeman County attorney got his prosecution based on your work."

"McGinty was convicted because he was guilty." It was fact, Lindsay was just restating it.

Stella agreed but just had one more thing to day. "I don't know…it was your interpretation of the blood spatter that broke the case wide open. That's what put you on Mac's radar two years ago, your attention to detail." Stella opened a drawer and found a protein bar and handed it to Lindsay.

"Thanks."

**

The talk with Stella pumped her up and helped give her that last push that she needed to make it to the end of the her shift.

Dead and dragging, ready to be home, she wasted no time gathering her stuff and hitting the busy streets.

Earlier in the day she compared the Bozeman lab to New York's. Upon starting her commute home, she made another comparison. Back home, she would clock out and hop in her truck and make the twenty mile trek in about in about a half an hour. She'd listen to loud music with the windows rolled down, breathing in the clean fresh air. The drive was her time to unwind and put a distance between her and her job. On this commute him, she was crammed onto the train with the rest of the commuters, it was noisy and the air was not fresh. There was no distance between her and her job, the job was all around her at the moment.

Her stop came along and she only had a couple of blocks to walk to the front door.

**

Danny wanted to hear all about her first day. He had everything all set up for her arrival home. But he did not expect the _thing_ that arrived. She was walking funny, holding her back. The thing that arrived had her hair pulled back in a pony tail and gone were the full bouncy curls that she spent time perfecting that morning. The thing that arrived was too tired to talk and it fell asleep before 9pm rolled around. She hadn't eaten dinner or changed her clothes. Danny ended up carrying her to bed very carefully and tucking her in. He put dinner in the fridge and got into bed with her and fell asleep.

**

The woman who walked through the door the next afternoon looked nothing like the _thing_ that had come home the night before. Lindsay came home, still tired, but at least she was able to stay awake for dinner and some light conversation, her back was still bothering her, so he shooed her into the tub for a hot bath.

Dinner was cleaned up again and dishes were in the dishwasher when the water in the bathroom was turned off. A quiet knock at the door brought her from the dozed and relaxed stated she was in.

"Yeah?"

"You decent?"

She quickly scanned the tub to see if the bubbled were thick enough to cover her and then thought again. "Does it matter? Come on in?"

He settled himself on the floor, leaning against the cabinet under the vanity. They sat facing each other almost side by side with the tub edge separating them.

"How's work?" He asked casually.

"Good." Hey eyes were closed, head back against the wall. She drew the word out in her relaxed state.

"Does it feel good to be back doing science to get the bad guys?"

"Uh-huh." Her chin dipped a few times. The movement caused the water to tipple around her silently. The only light that was on was one over the tub. One of the two bulbs was burned out. It cast a dim glow over the bathroom.

"Have they fixed the lab?"

"Yep, they sure did. It was mostly glass walls and equipment. Most of the evidence that Stella thought was destroyed was already locked back up and away from the explosion. You can hardly tell anything happened, well other than all the user manuals from the new machines are all still hanging around."

He was having a great time watching her. She was loopy.

"Adam will love playing with everything when get gets back next week."

"What day does he come back?"

Her hand came out of the water and she counted the days off on her fingers. "Tuesday I think."

"Any words about Mac's return?"

"YES!" He waited thirty seconds, but she never continued and he let out a bit of a chuckle. "You want to share what you've heard, please?"

"Oh, yeah. Peyton was invited to speak with a few other institutions. Mac is shadowing some Bobbys for different views on crime scene investigations." She giggled. "That's funny, Bobbys."

"You are loopy." He finally said it out loud.

"I took one of my muscle relaxants for my back."

That explained everything. He knew that is she stayed in the tub for any longer he would be carrying her to bed again.

"You ready to get out?"

"Sure. Will you hand me my towel?" The moment his back was turned to get the towel, she stood straight up and he got an eyeful when he turned back. He had to get a tight rein on himself, just long enough to get her dressed and in bed.

"Come on baby, let's get you to bed."

"As long as you're coming with me."

**

Lindsay became more and more accustomed to the change of pace in the lab. By Friday she was fully ready for the job and was up for a dinner out on the town with Danny when he called and made the offer. She was further surprised to see him walking the halls of the lab near the end of her shift. She watched him greet Stella and get a warm hug from her. The chatted long enough for her to finish her work, log the work that she'd done and put everything away. Upon coming back to get him, he was gone. Stella was in her office, but no Danny. She eliminated the rest of the lab before finding him sitting at his desk, which she had taken over.

"Danny what are you doing here?"

"It's my desk, although I like the woman's touch." He was playing with a silk daisy that she placed in the pencil cup on her first day.

She snatched it back from him and put it back. "No, wiseass, what are you doing at the lab?"

"I am picking up my beautiful girlfriend for dinner."

"What, you were just in the area?"

"Yeah, somethin' like that. You ready?"

She opened the drawer of his desk and grabbed a few personal items. "Now I am, where are we going?"

"Don't know yet."

**

The evening was quite warm for the first week of summer. Lindsay walked on the left side of him, holding onto the arm that he offered her. They strolled, canoodled, and talked. She was enjoying the company and did not want to stop and eat, so they snacked on things from their favorite places along the way. She filled him on the cases she had been working on and on her trip back to Bozeman over the 4th of July in two weeks.

"You're welcome to come with me; actually I would love it if you came with me. You won't be back to work until the next week at the very earliest. The family will be there. The fair will be going on. My plan was to leave the first available flight after work on the second and come back on the fifth."

He was going to go but it was fun listening to her try and convince him. He was also waiting for her to take a breath so that he could talk. But she didn't so he interrupted her.

"okay, okay, I'll go."

"Really?"

"Yes, I'll have to rearrange some things…"

"Like what? What could have planned during your vacation?"

"PT. We set up my schedule today and my appointments are on Thursdays for the next two months." He raised his arm to show her the new brace.

How had she not noticed that? She trained herself to avoid touching or bumping him on that side. She took a long look at the newer brace. It didn't go as far up his arm as the other one and the ends of his fingers were exposed. She gently touched the ends of his fingers.

"Wow. You do anything else today?"

"Yeah, I did."

"Really, you were the busy beaver today. What else did you do?"

"I finally went to see the department psychologist."

It was big news to her, but she tried to cover. It was a speed bump that he needed to cross before he went back to work. She knew that he'd done it before, but he was just a shooter then. This time around he was a victim.

"Good, how'd it go?"

"Well…"

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_Dun, dun, dun...._

_Feedback please._


	52. Chapter 52

The first time Danny had to go to see the department shrink, he expected leather couches, a dimmed room and a bald guy with one of those yellow legal pads that Lindsay loved. He turned his nose up each time he thought about the requirement.

But the first visit was nothing like what he expected.

A woman who looked like a secretary sat behind the same standard metal desk that everyone else who worked for the NYPD had. Glasses with a beaded chain sat on the end of her nose and she could barely been seen between two giant stacks of files that stood like pillars on her desk. She shocked him when she opened her mouth.

"You crazy?" It was gruff.

"No Ma'am."

"Are you mentally unstable?"

"Not that I know of."

"Alrighty then." She took a file from one stack, opened it up, made some notes and set it on the other pile.

"That's it?" He questioned.

"Yep, go back to work and get out of my office."

"Really?"

"No, not really, tell me why you were told to come see me." The gruff voice was gone.

Her tactic left him at east and he told her everything.

The second time around, when he entered the office he greeted her warmly.

"Hey Shirley, something's changed. I'm feelin' a little crazy and mentally unstable."

She laughed at him and once again he poured his heart out about everything that had happened since he'd last been in to see her and there had been a lot. An hour later he walked out of her office and down to see Lindsay.

"Danny, what did she say?" They had been strolling down the street munching on goodies.

"She wondered why I hadn't been to see her before today. She thinks that any one of the things that happened in the last 15-16 months might have taken me right back to her. Any of it could have pushed me over the edge. She wanted to know how I kept it all together." He squeezed her arm a little tighter and smiled his best smile at her.

"So you're good to go back to work?"

"When the hand doc says that I can, yes I'm good to go."

He didn't notice it, but Lindsay became quiet.

**

"Danny, answer your phone."

That momentary panic in his mind about missing a call-in from Mac passed and he cracked his eye lids at the clock.

"No way, Montana. 6:30 on a Sunday morning; not even my Ma would call that early. That's your phone sunshine."

She let out a pained groan and threw the covers off so forcefully that Danny was left mostly uncovered. Heavy, tired, and very unladylike stomping steps went down the hall to her phone. Danny laughed at her demeanor because she had become someone who slept in with him on the weekends. He knew what buttons to push, what look to give her in the mornings to wake her up, but calling her at 6:30 was not a method that he thought would work.

Her return to the bedroom was signaled by the mumbling he heard before he saw her.

"It's Sunday…early Sunday…day in bed…don't care about some dead guy…want to be back in bed…mmm back in bed with Danny…I hate work."

He called out to her as she violently searched for something to wear. "Get called in?"

"Yes!" Was barked back at him.

"Big case?" He leaned up on one elbow and tried not to smile at how cute she was.

"Yes." She stated forcefully.

"Can I bring you lunch around noon?" He offered.

"Fine." Her frustration could still be heard but so could the appreciation.

He lay back in bed, hand behind his head. He listened to her move around to finish getting ready and wished he could do anything to trade places with her.

**

Around noon he struggled to get into the building. He was weighed down by the same Chinese takeout that she brought him that first night she showed up at the lab. It was hard to carry everything and not put too much strain on his hand. He stopped at the front desk to shift the bags when he heard the voice of an angel…almost.

"Dan-O"

He whirled around. "Don Flack, friend to women and me, help me out here. " The two shared the load and rode up on the elevator.

"You know," Danny started as he watched the numbers rise, "Stella thought that Lindsay was there with you that night she brought me dinner."

"Really?" Flack thought of the absurdity of the thought. Lindsay and Danny were the best set of matched people he had ever met. He knew it the first night of the pool game when Lindsay caught him off guard.

"Yeah, you brought her up and the two of you sat in the break room. Stella saw you two and came to me asking if there was someone new in your life."

"You kiddin' me?" Danny shook his head at his friend. "And now, here you are bringing her lunch."

"Looks like it."

"She's good for you, ya know."

"Yeah." There was a ding and the elevator doors opened.

She was working at one of the stations, filling out a report. Her hair was twisted up and held in place by one of her large clips. Time had caused some wisps of hair to come loose and they were falling around her neck and face. Every once and a while, she stopped her writing to smooth it back or to blow it out of her face. She tapped her pen against her chin while she read or thought about what she was doing. She twisted to stretch the muscles in her back, never taking her eyes off the task in front of her.

Danny watched her very closely. He studied her. He stared at her. He scrutinized the rhythm of her breathing and counted the number of times that she blinked. It was like seeing her for the first time. She stood behind a lab table in a long white lab coat, just like in her classroom the day she casually dismissed him. Not much had changed. He saw the same curls, the same focus in her eyes. He knew that she held the same seriousness and heaven knew that she had the same spunk and wit. He gazed upon her with awe.

She finished the work she was doing and cleared the work space in front of her. He watched her through the transparent walls. She disappeared in his/their office, when she appeared again the lab coat was gone and so was the clip. Her long fingers were combing through her locks, shaking the curls back to life. People stopped her in the hall to talk. Her laughter carried around the lab and into his ears; he heard music.

It struck him. It took his breath away. In that instant everything froze and the biggest realization hit him: she looked at home, completely in her element, even natural in this setting. Not in the hall, but in the lab. She oozed confidence and familiarity. She was a perfect fit.

"You gonna start at her or go get her for lunch?"

"She's perfect Flack." He received a non committed grunt and his friend walked around the corner to her and whispered something into Lindsay' ear. She was at his side in ten paces.

The bags were unceremoniously dropped. She was engulfed by him and on the receiving end of a kiss that made her wonder. It was warm and full of love. It was surprising and new. One arm was around her back and a hand was lost in her thick hair. The kiss continued and she was over whelmed and awed. Seeing that it wasn't going to end anytime soon, she melted into his body and tried to give back as much as he was pouring into it. He pulled away first and it took her a few breaths to catch up. When her eyes opened she hoped for an explanation.

"You ready for lunch?" He question peering into her eyes and holding her face.

"Yes, let's go somewhere else. I'm done for the day."

**

Lunch was over. A tree served as a backrest and he leaned against it and read a book he'd brought along to keep him occupied if he needed to wait on Lindsay. His braced hand smoothed over a sleeping beauty's hair. Lindsay slept peacefully, lying on his leg. The adrenaline rush from working all morning ran out and she dozed off. He decided to just sit and enjoy.

**

Mornings started for both of them with the alarm. She would go to the shower; he would go to the kitchen. Coffee would be started and breakfast laid out. They would talk and flirt while she dressed and he would kiss her good bye at the door. While she worked, he straightened up around the house the best he could. Dinner magically appeared on the table before she got him. She washed and he dried when it came to dishes. They spent evenings curled up on the couch watching TV or a movie. When it got late, he spooned up behind her and they drifted off to sleep with love, each other and whispers of good night. Life was good

**

It meant a lot to her to see her new co-workers in the lobby on her first day. It stuck with her as a warm welcome and made her first day less nerve racking. The day Adam returned she wanted to give him the same welcome.

She arrived ten minutes before their shift was to start and hung out leaning against one of the columns in the lobby. Her posture straightened when she saw him.

"What up?" He greeted in classic Adam style.

"Welcome back." A hug was shared and they stepped back. "With your return, my job just became easier." He laughed and hung his head. "Just kidding, I'm glad your back. You ready?"

He looked up as if he could see through the floors to the lab. "I was born ready."

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_Feedback makes the writing process go faster. I'm begging here. You all still out there? 4th of July is next out in Montana and then season 4 starts really soon. What do you think?_


	53. Chapter 53

_If you review it I will write faster. Whoo hoo, thank you for the 500 reviews. It makes my day to get the e-mails that someone out there is commenting about what they are reading. Please please please keep it up._

_I am still finding it interesting how much readers are concerned about what I will do with Season 4 and if Lindsay is going to be staying in the lab or going back to teaching. The next chapter will have some of the answers about that. But things can always change, you never know..._

_Here's a longer than usual chapter for me. Something nice to start the week with._

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Lights shining bright on the front porch meant that her parents had waited up for them.

"Mom, we're here." Lindsay announced from inside the front door. Bags were set down and she went searching the house for them. "Mom? Dad?"

"Out here honey!" Was heard from the back of the house. Lindsay led Danny to the deck where her parents were watching the stars and enjoying the evening. The old screen door slammed and they were warmly greeted by her parents.

"Danny, how are ya doin' hun?"

"I'm good Mama Monroe."

Mama took a good long look at the couple and saw how happy and good they looked.

"Well, come on, come on." Mama cooed. "Have a seat and tell us what's been going on out East."

Lindsay and Danny spent the next hour retelling stories of the school year, the drug raid, summer in the lab, physical therapy, and what the next few months had in store for them. Danny let out a huge yawn as Lindsay was telling a story about one of the kids in her class.

"Look at you," Mama interrupted, "You must be exhausted. Go on, get to bed. We can chat more tomorrow."

**

There were no traffic noises. There were no horns, sirens, or garbage trucks backing up. He couldn't hear Mrs. Garrett singing in her shower through the wall. The only thing he could hear were birds singing and machinery in the distance. He could smell the remnants of bacon hanging in the air when he finally got out of bed at 9:30 the next morning. Lindsay was gone and her side of the bed was cool to the touch.

The kitchen was empty. There was no evidence of anyone making anything for breakfast. Bacon was gone and all the dishes had been washed and put up. There was however about an inch of liquid left in the coffee pot and a cow mug sat next to it. A napkin sat nearby with a note: "When you grow up with four brothers you learn something really quick about food; you belong to one of two groups: the quick and the hungry. Drink your breakfast this morning, you'll like the way my mom makes coffee. Then come find me. –Montana."

Re-warming what was left of the coffee, he went out to the deck to greet the morning. Mama Monroe was sitting and peeling potatoes.

"Morning Mama."

"Morning, you sleep well?"

"Yes, Ma'am, thank you." He eased into a seat and started to flex his fingers like the doctor had showed him.

"How ya holding up sweetie?" She noticed his hand exercises out of the corner of her eye.

"As best as can be expected."

"You mentioned it last night, but when do you expect to go back to work?" She asked not taking her attention away from the task she was doing.

"End of July, beginning of August, but lab work only for a while. I should be 100% by the end of September at the latest."

"And Lindsay starts back to school when you go back to the lab?"

"Yes ma'am."

"That's when her shortened summer will start?"

"I guess, we have not talked about it, but I know she's looking forward to using part of her summer break."

"Uh-huh." Mama switched from the potatoes to breaking the ends off of a huge pot of green beans.

"She's enjoying her time at the lab. She's doing science; she's around friends, and getting paid. There are two months in the summer when she has no income."

"You alright with her working there right now?"

"Why wouldn't I be? She's happy, plus she's a complete natural at what she's doing." His attention was drawn out to the barn. A bright red tractor came around the corner from a field. Lindsay looked so petite sitting on top. She had on a ball cap, jean shorts and a red t-shirt that looked like one of his. The back tire of the machine was taller than she was. "Now that's a sight to see."

"Watch out, she's a natural here too." Mama pointed in the direction of the barn with the knife that she had in her hand. Lindsay and the tractor disappeared into the darkness of the barn. Mama kept working but looked at Danny as he watched the darkened door for her return. "Did you know that by the time Lindsay was nine, she'd been taught how to pick off a squirrel from more than thirty yards?"

He didn't look at her but did respond. "No ma'am, I didn't." He still waited for Lindsay to come out of the large building on the other side of the large garden, but he saw no sign of her yet.

"Her brothers spent hours showing her the right way to hunt and fish. They taught her the ways of the world along with her Daddy and me. Being the only little girl in the family, she was taught well how to take care of herself, but she also knows that if anything happens, we'll be there in an instant." Mama sat back and waited for any response from him.

Danny could see where this was going; it was a gentle warning. Steam drifted from his coffee cup. He wanted to choose his words very carefully. He knew they liked him, but still he was the big city boy taking their daughter and sister away.

"Lindsay dismissed me with a little wave of her hand the first time I met her. She beat the pants off of me at a game of pool in front of my best friend the first night we went out. She had challenged me every step of the way. I have had lots of chances to run for the hills, but I haven't. She had held me up and gotten me through the beating of my brother, an attack on one of our friends, the brutal murder of my old partner and now this." He held up his arm. "Her friends are my friends. I supported her unconditionally when she needed me and even flew across country to support her. Her students know me and I am part of her classes." He fiddled with the cup in his hands. "She likes my parents and they like her." He looked into the older woman's eyes. "I'm not going anywhere. I love her too much. I can't think of any kind of future without her." Lindsay chose that breath of time to exit the barn and walk the path through the garden towards them. It was a different side of her that he hadn't seen before. "You are beautiful." He told her, even with the dirt smudges across her arms and face. Even with her rural ranch toughness. Even with sweat matting her hair to her face and neck.

"Yeah, whatever." Her focus shifted. "Mama, Daddy's runnin' down to Cody's to see what he can do to help get ready for tomorrow." The screen door slammed and they were left alone again.

Danny had an afterthought. "Plus, she always keeps me on my toes."

"You ever gonna marry my daughter?" The words broke the stare that he had on the door.

"Yes ma'am, I am…someday." He got up and went exploring leaving Mama smiling to herself.

**

Coney Island was the highlight of the summer when he was growing up. His family had taken that once in a lifetime trip to Disney World right before Louie started middle school. But amusement parks were blah to him growing up. His whole outlook on them changed in a matter of hours.

"Lindsay what is that aroma?" He pulled at his nose while walking from the truck to the ticket booth.

"Oh, I know, I cannot wait to get my hands on a funnel cake; all the powdered sugar and the fluffiness of it. YUM!" She took a huge breath in.

"That's not what I smell." He was still pulling at his nose as if that would make it go away. She looked puzzled. He looked disgusted. It dawned on her.

"You smell the animals." The laughter bubbled up and she tried to cover her grin with her hand. "The 4-H club uses this to choose what animals will go on to state fair in September. On the other side of he carnival rides are the animals barns where they are shown."

"You don't smell that?"

"Country nose. I'm immune. You'll get used to it." They came to the end of the line at the ticket booth.

"Who'd want to get used to _that_ smell?" He shuffled with the line. "So what's your favorite ride?" She was tucked close into his side.

"The Ferris wheel." Animated she bounced a bit. "Did you know that the Ferris wheel debuted in the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago and the tallest one is in China? I love 'em"

"The Ferris wheel? I would have guessed 'The Zipper,' or the 'Gravatron.'" He tried to pull her back closer, but she was too excited.

"Those are good too, but I love the Ferris wheel." He paid as she talked.

"Let's go there first."

"And last."

**

The night went quickly. They rode everything, ate everything, played lots of games, and were the proud owners of a six foot long stuffed snake. The snake caused a wonderful conversation about how they were going to get it back to New York. Their new treasure kept the ride operator of the Ferris wheel company while they rode one more time…again.

"So what's in store for us tomorrow?" The ride was making the start/stop rotation while filling up.

"Barbeque at Cody's with the family, friends and then fireworks right over there in that field." She pointed way off to a field. "We'll go over to Cody's around 3 to eat, talk, swim, eat, laugh, eat and to eat. At 8 we'll head out to see the fireworks. Afterwards, back to Mama's and Daddy's for cold beer and to catch fireflies."

"Fireflies?"

"Yep." The wheel made its first full rotation. It was the first time that they had ridden in the dark. Their car was coming up the back of the ride and was about to go up and over at the top. The thrill of reaching the apex and going over into nothing by the darkness in front of them excited Lindsay and let Danny know how she felt with a demanding, hungry kiss. Her hands were all over him; in his hair, on his arms, up and down his thighs. The safety bar stopped her from crawling into his lap. She broke the lip lock as they rounded the bottom.

"Wow, you really love the Ferris wheel," was stated while catching his breath. He tried to straighten his clothes and hair the best he could.

"I sure do, and if you like this, wait until you see what fireworks do for me." They reached the top again and another kiss was shared.

**

There was going to be a test, he was warned. He was introduced to family members and close friends and he was told that there was going to be a test later on his memory of who was who.

He met her oldest brother Cody and his wife Jennifer. He met the second oldest brother, David and his pregnant wife, Olivia. He met next oldest brother, Bill and his fiancée Holly. There was another brother, but he was out of state and he couldn't make it to the party. He met scores of neighbors and friends from the past, but he could not remember all of them.

There were scores of kids running around and it reminded him of Thanksgiving at his house. The heat beat down on them and splashes from the pool every so often was a welcome feeling. The sweating cold bottle felt good in his hand. The grill was fired up. Mama Monroe was across the patio rubbing the very swollen belly of her daughter-in-law.

"Danny?"

"Huh, yeah?" Lindsay sat down next to him.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good."

She followed his sightline. "You lookin' at Mama or Olivia?"

"Both. Your Mom's excited about a baby."

"Yeah, we all are." Eye contact was broken.

There was something more behind her answer. "But…" He egged her on.

Her posture changed, shoulders slumped; she hung her head. "Olivia's pregnancy is not the first in the family." She played with the label on her own bottle. "It's the fourth. Jennifer's had three miscarriages. They are supposed to have a good sized family already. It's been hard to celebrate with David and Olivia when Cody and Jennifer have been through so much. Don't misunderstand me, there are no hard feelings about any of it, at all, but it's there, just below the surface and hurts sometimes. Jennifer and Cody are in the process of adoption."

"When's Olivia due?"

"End of September."

"You wantin' kids."

"Of course." It was said quickly. She looked over at him and saw his raised brow. "I mean what little girl doesn't imagine herself all grown up with a husband and 2.4 kids? Have I thought any further than that? Not really. If something changes, I will revisit the topic." She left it at that and walked over to where her mother was with Olivia and placed her hand on the baby bump and then looked back at Danny. She started to think about it.

**

The sun was starting to dip low in the sky. It almost kissed the horizon. The family piled up into their cars and drove out in the direction that he and Lindsay went in the night before. The field was huge. People were already staking their claims. Mama Monroe went one way and Lindsay pulled Danny in a completely different direction. She walked almost to the tree line before she stopped. With a flourish the blanket was puffed and spread out.

"Montana, what are we doing way over here?"

"It's the best viewing spot."

"Then why are we more than 100 feet away from everyone else here?"

"This is the best viewing spot for me."

Confusion was obvious. "Oh-kay." Shoes were off her feet and she sat. He followed her actions and sat behind her like they usually do at the park.

"Nope, not going to work." She wiggled away from him.

"Wha-Why?"

Lindsay looked back at him over her shoulder and talked to him very suggestively. "Because when the fireworks start, you're gonna have to be flat on your back." There was no question, there was no arguing, that was the way it was going to be, her voice said so.

_Blink_. Did she just say what he heard? _Blink._ A knot of arousal formed low in his stomach. _Blink. _"Um…wow, fireworks really turn you on, but what about all these people?" _Blink._

"No, wiseass, that's later." The words came out like silk. "You have to lay flat on your back because they shoot them off from right behind the trees. When they explode, they're right above our heads." She filled him in.

"So later then…?" Two men walked past them and disappeared into the trees. "If you didn't tell me that the fireworks are shot from back there, that would look very suspicious." He told her.

"That means we are getting very close." She was on her back as fast as lightning. He got as close as he could, a hand on the skin of her thigh.

"Ladies and Gentlemen…" Boomed across the field. He didn't hear the rest. Lindsay bent her legs and his hand slid higher. He could feel her whole body coil in anticipation. The ground shook when the first mortar took off like a rocket, then the sky lit up above them. Lindsay's breath quickened, she had her hand on whatever part of Danny she could reach. Each time the ground shook; she writhed at the vibration and shifted slightly. The loud explosions were deafening, but Danny swore that she was moaning. He was mesmerized by every gasp, body twitch, sign, and muscle contraction. The colors reflected on her face and she was thoroughly enjoying herself. He had a new mission in life: take Lindsay to see as many firework displays as possible.

**

He woke up first, stiff and itchy. Sleeping on a bed of straw would do that to a person. So would a night with Lindsay Monroe after watching fireworks.

_He had to drive back to the farm because she was so wound up. They went for a walk in the dark while everyone stayed behind and did the whole firefly thing._

_Voices faded behind them. Lights faded behind them. A hand slid into the sleeve of his t-shirt and across his chest. A narrow beam of light showed then the way from a tiny flashlight. She didn't see it because she was too busy doing other things with her other hand…to him…that were making it very hard to walk a straight line. The night swallowed them and shadows of trees passed. Nimble fingers slipped into his jeans._

"_Dat's it." He barked._

_The narrow beam of light went out. One of the trees they passed became a resting point for their assault on each other. Clothes were shed, marks were left on skin. The hum of crickets around them faded as whispered moans, gasps, and screams became louder. They fell to the ground roughly and their whispers were gone. It was now a battle for control and no matter what happened, both of them were going to win. _

_They made their way back to the house, but only made it as far as the barn before she took over again. He shouldn't have put all his clothes on after the first time if they were just going to come back off so soon. Time was taken loving this time. Marks he left on her before were now kissed away. Screams and groans from before were now sighs and breaths. Nips at flesh with teeth were now deep kisses of blind passion._

He was able to get up and dress quietly. The stillness of the morning could be felt as he peered out the loft door. Mama Monroe sat out on the deck. He took a deep breath in and was a peace. By the end of the day the peace and quiet would be traded for the noisy and busy streets of New York.

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_Review, review, review. It makes me want to write more._


	54. Chapter 54

_I have to dedicate this to my husband. In the last few nights he has ignored me while I started to rewatch season 4 again to get ready for writing what is coming up. I have one more chapter after this one and then season 4 starts. Last night I watched 'Child's Play' before getting in bed. _

_You are all awesome. I am completely addicted to reviews and feedback. I have been getting feedback from those of you who have never said anything before. Thank you thank you thank you. Please keep up the great support. _

_Read and review pelase._

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"How was Montana, Monore?" Don Flack dropped a plastic bag with a bloody hammer in it o the table in front of her. "Detectives found this three blocks away from the scene. Thought I'd bring it over."

"Thanks Flack." She cocked her head to one side. "Nothing says love like bloody tools." She started working. "Montana was good." She told him.

"You bring Messer back or is he still out roundin' up cattle?"

"After eating my mom's country cooking, it was hard to tear him away, but he's home. Call him and go out tonight. I have to work late." The elevator doors opened, Adam stepped out with a laughing blond. Adam blushed. "Who's that?"

"The new girl. Stella hired her while you were gone. She works in the lab."

"And her name is?"

"New girl. We haven't formally been introduced. I haven't worked with her yet. Linds, there are people who have been working here for years and I haven't met them. But she's got Adam really hopping."

"Really?"

"You watch." He told her before bouncing his brow and walking away.

**

Lindsay watched Adams and Kendal for the rest of July. She watched them banter and flirt. She watched the respect grow and the two become closer. Lindsay took stories home to Danny and he couldn't wait to get back to work to meet the girl that could fluster Adam.

**

"You've started something you know." Hawkes told Stella in the main lobby. "When you came down to meet Lindsay, you started something. Adam told me that Lindsay was there when he came in the front door for his first day back and now here we are again waiting for Danny." He glanced around at the usually suspects hanging around and waiting for Danny to stumble in. Hawkes leaned in closer to Stella. "I wonder what Mac's gonna think when we're all standing here when he comes back."

"Lindsay will most likely be gone by then and she won't drag us all down here for a welcome back reception." Stella told him. Lindsay was the one behind the latest meeting in the lobby. She announced that she was going to her break and meet Danny when got there. Adam followed and Kendal followed Adam. Their small evacuation got some attention and more followed. It finally came down to Hawkes and his reason for being there was that he didn't want to be the only one who didn't show up. Somehow Sid found out and stepped into the marble cave seconds before Flack walked in.

"All this for me, awww you shouldn't have." Two hands were placed on his heart and he pretended to be overwhelmed.

"Get over here, Flack. You know this isn't for you." Lindsay told him.

"Yeah Flack, this isn't for you, this is for me." Nobody noticed his arrival during the other detective's dramatic performance. Danny stood a short distance away, bag over his shoulder, smug look on his face. There was a round of welcome backs and then it as back to work.

"Lindsay, before you leave today we need to talk." Stella told her as they parted ways.

**

There are few works that you never really want to hear your boss say. After the popularity of Trump and the Apprentice one might thing that "you're fired" would be those words, but the words "we need to talk" can be worse. It could be something positive or something negative. And usually it meant change.

When Stella said the words Lindsay momentarily panicked. Had she messed up? Had she missed something? Had there been a complaint? Was there an issue with a piece of evidence? Every possible question ran through her mind but nothing prepared her for the discussion at the end of her shift.

"Hey kiddo have a seat." Stella greeted her when she stepped up to her office door. Stella finished what she was working on and gave Lindsay her whole attention. "Let me say that your work here the last six weeks has been top notch. You jumped right in and helped out more than you will ever know." There was a pause. "Adam's back. Danny's kinda back and I would understand if you are ready to step out. There's only a month left of your summer break and I don't want you to feel obliged to stick around."

Whoa, what had she just been told? She could leave and go enjoy her summer. Did she really want to leave? She though back to the original agreement: she would work until things went back to normal. Were things back to normal? Danny wasn't 100% yet and Mac wasn't back.

"What if I want to stick around?" It must have been the last thing Stella expected to hear.

"Huh?"

"I said...I would stay until things were back to normal. Danny's not back out in the field yet and Mac's still in London. What if I want to stick around until he comes back?"

"You can't"

Those two words slapped her in the face and left her stunned. There was no attitude in the words, it was just the words. Stella looked so puzzled. She looked lost and her face was full of questions. Lindsay hoped the question was not "why would you think you could?"

"Oh." Her palms ran up and down the thighs of her jean as she stood to leave. The emotion couldn't be hidden. It screamed through her facial features.

"Lindsay, sit back down." Stella came around her desk and say on the couch next to Lindsay. "Mac's not getting back until the end of next month. You'll be in school by then."

"If I could." Lindsay shifted on the couch as if to keep what she was saying private, even though they were the only ones in the office. "If I could swing something, could I stay until Mac gets back?"

Stella carefully chose her words. Lindsay watched Stella's hands fold in front of her and her arms come to rest on her legs. "Let me say it this way: You could probably stay on as long as you wanted. We never really filled the position you interviewed for. Mac always hoped that you would change your mind."

"I'm only thinking about staying until the end of September." She told her.

"If you are available, we will use you."

**

August started with Lindsay working opposite shifts from Danny. He was on days and she was on nights. She showed up thirty minutes before he was to leave and he hung around for about thirty minutes when he was done to be with her. Other than that hour of overlap, they didn't see much of each other.

Each day Lindsay noticed items on Danny's "can't do" list get marked off. His recovery moved quite quickly once he was back at work. She'd wake up midday and the dishes and laundry would be done from the night before. He'd come home and dinner would be in the fridge ready to reheat. Danny immersed himself into his work and it was as if he'd never left. Lindsay loved her work and became a bigger part of the NYPD.

**

To: MDozier

From: LMonroe

Subject: Personal Leave

Mr. Dozier,

I hope that you are having a pleasant summer. Mine has been very busy yet fun.

Sir, I know this is short notice, but I need to take some personal leave at the beginning of the school year. Please advise me on who I need to see about getting this done. Again, I am sorry about the short notice

--Lindsay Monroe

**

To: LMonroe

From: MDozier

Subject: Re: Personal Leave

Ms. Monroe,

Unless your leave time is due to illness, your request for partial leave is not an option. You can take leave for personal reasons a semester at a time and then return to your position or one comparable. I am sorry to hear that you need to take leave; I hope that all is well.

--Mike Dozier

**

She had to make a decision. She had to make the right decision for her. It took a lot of yellow legal paper to really think it out. The next stop was to talk to Stella and see if she was crazy for what she wanted to do. She filed all the necessary paperwork with the school district and kept working at the lab quietly straight through to the beginning to August's last week.

**

**Monday**

The date was highlighted on every single thing that told them what day it was. It was circled on the calendar on their desk in the lab. It was highlighted in yellow on the calendar that he carried in his bag. Huge red arrows pointed to it on the calendar at home. All the other days leading up to that day were crossed off. In the apartment, it felt like Christmas, New Year's Eve and the Fourth of July.

That day was Danny's first day back out in the field.

He was medically clear to 100% again.

He was ready to get to work. He pushed Lindsay to go faster, walked faster, get there faster. He wanted to work. He wanted a case. He didn't have to wait long. Stella was waiting for him when he got off the elevator.

"Morning Danny, you're with me. Dead guy in an alley. Flack's there and waiting, he asked for you specifically."

He handed his stuff off to Lindsay slowly and Stella held out his kit. It fit perfectly in his hand like and extension of him, a missing piece. He shifted it to the other hand and firmly gripped the handle and let it hand at his side.

"I love you and be careful." Lindsay made the space between them disappear and kissed him briefly.

"Aww!" It came from a chorus made up of everyone in the lab.

"Love you too." It was meant for her ears only and another kiss fell upon her lips.

**

**Wednesday**

"Blood work came back from your case." Lindsay stated coming up to Danny in the hall. "It's only the vic's."

"Okay, no signs of stuggle, weapon only had the vic's prints on it…"

They continued to work their theories out while walking.

With many layer of glass between the couple and Stella, she watched. Flack walked up to his good friend and tried to figure out what she was staring at.

"Something's got your attention."

"Look."

Flack found what she was staring at. Through body language and facial expressions that Lindsay and Danny were making, Flack could tell that they were going over the case. Danny held the file open with one hand and counting things off with the other. Lindsay turned a page and pointed something out and then Danny nodded in agreement.

All Stella and Flack needed was some ragtime piano music and they'd have the perfect silent movie.

Lindsay stood back and reenacted how she thought the murder happened. Danny shook his head and closed the file to show Lindsay how he thought the killing happened. All in silence to the onlookers, they had a heated discussion about the evidence vs. the theories and then an imaginary light bulb went off over her head. She told him something, they acted it out and then high-fived each other and went separate ways.

"They work well together." Flack told his best friend standing there. "Too bad school starts next week for her." He didn't hang around long enough for Stella to share her secret.

**

**Friday**

He had to be at work at 7am. She was due in at 1pm. He cursed Stella's name for not letting them work the same shift on her last day. He got out of the apartment as quietly as he could and then the moping started.

Danny's mood was foul.

He snapped at Adam when the test results he was waiting for weren't back when he wanted them to be done.

He snapped at Flack for his good mood and chipper greeting. Danny really lit into him when Flack had the nerve to ask what his problem was.

He snapped at Hawkes while out on a case.

He snapped at Stella when she told him to be in her office at 1:30 that afternoon.

The only two people who missed a biting remark from him were Sid, only because he didn't go down to the coroner's office, and Lindsay. When Lindsay got into the office she lit into him.

"What's your problem?" She didn't give him the chance to answer. "I got off the elevator and people are questions me about your wonderful mood." Blue eyes stared back at her. "Well?"

"Well what?"

"What's with the mood today?" He took too long with the answer. "Tell me later, I have to get in and see Stella about something."

"Yeah, she wanted to see me too."

"Let's go then."

The met Flack in the hall. He was transporting a large, white, flat cake box. Danny knew in his heart that it was probably part of the send off for Lindsay. His foul mood worsened. Danny and Lindsay were followed into Stella's office by Flack and the box. Adam and Kendal trickled in and Hawkes and then Sid.

"Good, we're all here, except for Mac of course. But, um, I wanted to bring you all here today to celebrate paperwork." She got blank stares from the people she knew hated the piles and piles of paperwork that came with their jobs. "I have been signing a lot of paperwork lately. The first thing to come across my desk was the reinstatement of Adam after medical leave. Welcome back. We missed you while you were gone." A quiet round of applause echoed off the walls.

Stella turned her attention to another person in the office. "Kendal joined us and I am proud to say that her probationary period was over as of two days ago." Adam gave her an awkward hug that lasted a few seconds too long and it was noticed by all. "Kendal, I don't think I need to say that we are ALL very happy to have you around and you have been a great asset to the lab." Her attention changed again. "Detective Messer."

"I am sorry to everyone for my _wonderful_ mood today." Danny interjected trying to smooth thing over with everyone.

"Thanks for that, but I was going to say that the official paperwork, fully reinstating you to the field was filed yesterday." Lindsay hugged him and he was congratulated by a slap on the back from Flack. He was starting to fly high again.

"That brings me." Stella started one more time. "To the last set of papers that were just signed this morning."

Dark clouds fell over Danny. This had been his and Lindsay's best time. He loved sharing this life with her and having their lives so woven around each other. They talked about cases they were investigating and processing. His evidence was always passed her way and then they worked out the details together.

"Lindsay, you have done us all a huge favor by giving up your summer to help us make ends meet." She went on to say other wonderful things about Lindsay's work ethic, attention to detail, knowledge and ability to follow the evidence, but Danny shut it out. He knew the last words would be "Thank you so much and have a great school year." But those words never came.

Flack started slapping him on the back and Lindsay was being hugged by everyone.

The cake box lid was opened and he read the words. "Welcome back Adam and Danny! Welcome aboard Kendal and Lindsay."

He couldn't help but think "What did I just miss?"

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_Okay...my goal with Lindsay working in the lab is not to rehash the episodes of what we saw. I am hoping to have a healthy mix. If you have any suggestions about anything dealing with season 4 please let me know. The main question I get is about Rikki and Danny sleeping together. What about the rest of the season?_


	55. Chapter 55

_Here we go again. You are amazing and thank you for reading. By the end of this chapter we get to the beginning of season 4. An so it begins..._

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Danny didn't hug or congratulate Lindsay. He just stood. She was still keeping him on his toes alright.

She made it around the room and back to him for a hug.

"What just happened?" He whispered in her ear.

"It was just announced that I am going to hang around here for a while and work instead of going back to teaching this year." Fingers toyed with the short hair on the back of his neck.

"Why?"

"Lots of reasons. Money's better, it's challenging…my friends are here…I'm good at it…I missed it and" She leaned into his ear again and whispered. "There's this really great guy who works here that I want to get to know better."

"Really?" It was starting to sink in. "Who might that be?"

"Sid!!!"

Danny was flabbergasted, but he hadn't seen the gentleman walk up from behind him.

"Welcome aboard, sweetie." The older gentleman hugged her.

"Thank you." She moved away to see the cake

He cupped Danny on the shoulders. "You had no idea did you?"

"No, it was a total surprise."

**

"Montana, think this out with me." He held a case file in his hand and was flipping through the pages.

She heard it from Danny at least one or two times a week; he'd pop around a corner, ask her over dinner, or think it out during a game of pool. She added extra insight and another opinion. She helped break more than one case and he was hoping to get some new angles on this one too. Lindsay kept working on the pair of shoes from a case that Hawkes was working.

"Set it up for me."

"This morning I went to a scene where a mother and her three boys were found dead in a garage."

"Cause of death?"

"Carbon monoxide poisoning, all four."

"Murder/suicide?"

"Yeah, that's what I thought until my follow-up with Sid. He found trauma on the mother's face and head, blunt force trauma."

Gloves were snapped off and she leaned a hip against the lab table. "Okay, I'm confused. Start over."

In typical Danny form he tossed the file on the table, spread his feet to a comfortable distance apart and started talking with his hands. "Neighbor hears the car engine in the closed garage. After not getting a response at the front door, he called the cops. They break in and find the bodies: three small boys in car seats and mother on the floor by the open driver's door." He placed the scene photos in her out stretched hand. She flipped through them looking for small clues to what happened.

"Father/husband?"

"Out of state."

"Robbery?"

"No forced entry, place wasn't tossed, wallet in purse, purse in car."

She was still looking at the photos.

"Danny is this guy manually opening the garage?" She indicated to the EMTs in the photos.

"Yeah, the power was out. A power pole was knocked during an accident down the block."

"Blood alcohol?"

Danny checked the report. "0.0"

"You sure this isn't a case of murder/suicide?"

"There's the unexplained trauma to her head that would have knocked her out and Flack's had his hands full with the parents/grandparents. The family is catholic and they just know that their daughter would NOT do this."

"She might have been on her way to work." The wheels in her head started spinning. She paced the length of the room, looked more at the photos and thought. "Is the car here in the garage downstairs?"

"Yeah."

"Can I take a look at it?"

"It's evidence, yeah."

**

She looked and barely touched. She compared the photos to the car and looked closely at the real thing hoping for any indication to what happened.

"There's hair here in the seal of the door."

"Yeah, its her's."

She looked closely at the seat. The dusty footprint from the photos was still there. Her eyes wandered around the space while ideas formulated and theories came together. "I think I know what happened."

**

The only thing that sat on the table was an open box of white Kleenex. Danny and Don sat on a bench around the edge of the room and Lindsay sat across from the family. The case file was purposely forgotten in her office and she was looking at photos of the deceased family that the parents/grandparents had brought with them. Lindsay softened herself as much as she could while she sat there. There was small talk about each of the children and the things that they loved to do. Lindsay listened closely as they spoke. When each of the photos was taken back by the two sitting across from her, her hands folded in front of her.

"I know that this has been a very trying day for you. I am so sorry for the loss that you have suffered. I want you to know that your daughter did not kill your grandchildren of herself this morning. What happened at your daughter's home was a horrible, tragic accident." She gave them a moment to let the news sink in. Lindsay took in her hand a tissue and gave it to the woman sitting across from her. "Your daughter got ready to leave for work. She started the car and tried to open the garage, but it didn't open." She wanted to explain it fully but as briefly as she could without giving any of the details that they didn't need to hear. "There had been a car accident in the neighborhood and it knocked out the electricity when a power pole went over. She got out of the car so she could open it manually. When she stepped on the front seat to pull the cord that would release the door from the motor, she slipped and hit her head on the car door and knocked herself out, with the car still running. They succumbed from the carbon monoxide. It was all an accident. I am so sorry."

The family was distraught, beyond inconsolable, but relieved. The victim's mother held Lindsay's hand and looked her in the eye. "Thank you, thank you for finding the truth. You have no idea what this means to us."

In quiet thought, a family advocate stepped in to talk to the family and the three detectives stepped out of the room. Lindsay needed to be away and she went down the hall on her own. Danny and Don stood quietly and let her go. The compassion and thoughtfulness she showed for the family was awe inspiring. Her explanation was flawless. Flack drew a hand down his face almost in disbelief. He saw the strength that she had. He saw the human side of detective work in Lindsay Monroe in that little room.

Danny saw something in that room that he had never seen before. He saw someone take the worst news in the world and made someone feel relieved to hear it. He saw her work magic and bring some ease to their suffering. The depth of her commitment to her job struck him hard in the chest and he was struck dumb. To him the day was over and nothing could follow what he had just witnessed.

If the lab had a system of "street cred," Lindsay would have banked a lot that day. Stella was stunned with her intuition about the case. Before leaving the lab that night, Lindsay was receiving pats on the back for a job well handled and well done. For Lindsay it was the small sign that she needed to prove that she had made the right decisions in her life about switching jobs. Her head was held a little higher.

**

**

"Whoa."

"Yeah, I know. She did it this afternoon. She said she needed a change. I'm still getting used to it." Danny told Flack, standing by the bar a few nights later. Stella called them all together for a drink at Sullivan's to toast the end of summer, to toast a rough case that came to an end earlier that day, and to toast the best group of people she ever worked with. Mac was returning the next day and she really wanted to thank everyone for making his absence a little more tolerable with hard work.

"Wow." Flack said again in disbelief.

"Yeah, she gets a day off and she spends it getting all her hair cut off." Gone were Lindsay's curls. Gone were Lindsay's waves. Danny thought there was a strange woman in their apartment when he went to pick her up for their night out. He didn't recognize her at all.

Stella started another toast a little ways away. She wasn't drunk, just very loose lipped. She was gushing about how wonderful detectives were and called Flack over. "Oh Donnie, without you guys we'd be lost." Danny knew that very few people got away with calling his best friend 'Donnie.' It looked like Stella, for the night at least, was added to that very short list of two or three. Danny laughed and took a fresh drink to Lindsay.

Adam and Kendal were openly flirty, it was nothing too serious, but Adam's eyes were light and he was smiling and laughing way too much. Hawkes and Sid were off in their own world talking about a new brain imager something or other that had been installed in the morgue.

The night got late and the family members started to pour themselves into cabs. Danny noticed everyone got into their own taxis except Adam and Kendal. Looking really cozy, they got into the same cab and departed.

Danny opened the car door for Lindsay and they were on their way.

**

Warm hands were walking her up slowly. It was early, the sunlight was barely visible, but they didn't have to be at work until early afternoon and it was turning out that it might be a great morning. Lips targeted the skin on her neck. Shorter hair gave him better access to her. His hands were all over the front of her body and he was really starting to get into loving her. She let him worship her freely. The blood started rushing in her body. It was so loud nothing could be heard.

Until…

His phone starting ringing in the distance.

It was ignored and their focus returned to the matter at hand, literally.

Until…

Her phone started ringing in the distance. Coincidence? It was ignored.

He got a text.

She got a text.

He got a text.

She got a text.

"Cowboy, whoa. Something's going on." Taking a t-shirt from the floor she went to get their phones. She was gone a moment before the screaming started. "GET UP!" GET DRESSED! My phone missed a call from Stella. Her fist text says 'Get to the lab.' The second say 'NOW!' You have a missed call from Stella. The first text from her says 'Get to the Statue of Liberty.' The second one says 'NOW!'" Lindsay flew into their room and started throwing clothes around. Danny turned on a local station.

"Police are just arriving, but this is the view that greeted New York this morning when the sun rose about an hour ago."

Both Lindsay and Danny froze in their places to see what was showing on the television. The news helicopter flew around to the front of the Statue of Liberty's face and a red substance dripped down her nose as if she had been shot in the forehead.

Danny and Lindsay wasted no time getting to where they were ordered to go.

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_I am stuggling with season 4. I am getting frustrated with season 4 and thoughts have come through about walking away from it for a while. I have been watching the episodes again, I have been studying the episodes and trying to get inside of them and almost behind the scenes, but still its been hard. I know where I want to be when the season ends, but getting there has been a struggle. Please hang with me, I don't know what's gonna happen next with this._

_--Thank you for being there with me so far._


	56. Chapter 56

_I'm back for another chapter. What I find strange is that in the next week (possibly before the next chapter is published) I will see Gary Sinise and be back in my home. This will include twenty hours of driving three nights in my home town of Chicago._

_I have always taken time to thank my reviewers. I really do appreciate you, please know that, but also know that I notice when someone adds me to favorite author, favorite story, and story alerts. Thank you for taking the time to add me to those. It's a personal choice and thank you for making it. The author alert might come in handy soon. I have been working on something else with the characters from NY during my blockage times for this story. The first chapter is written and the rest of the story (there will be a definate end) is starting to fall into place. Working on the other piece has helped with this one._

_Please send your feedback, it gives me a guage of how I am doing and if I am going in the right direction. _

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There's always something to do at the NYPD crime lab. Cases were always coming in, evidence always needed to be processed and in those rare five seconds where there was nothing to do, and there were cold cases and paper work to see about. People always moved, machines always hummed, printers spit out paper all the time. Quiet chatter murmured around usually and phones rang.

Lindsay didn't hear any of it. She stood by the large screen in the conference room with the remote in her hand and she watched people scurry around the statue like ants. A helicopter reporting on the story focused mostly on the face and the red stain marring the landmark, but there were few times that they showed a wider shot as she noticed all her friends and colleagues rushing around.

"We're getting reports that no terrorist groups have come forward to take responsibility for the red paint on the statue. Police are on the scene and they are investigating. There had even been some reports of the possibility of victims, Statue of Liberty security guards missing or possibly dead." An off screen reporter commented on the situation.

Lindsay made some notes about finding suppliers of paint and questioning them about large amounts of red being bought recently. She watched closely as the helicopters will around the head of the monument again. She caught sight of Stella in the torch as the aircraft flew. She switched stations when the news anchor came on and the images of the crime scene were minimized down to corner of the screen. She landed on another one that was showing the crime scene and the anchor's voice could be heard in the background.

"We now have confirmation that there is one victim dead. She was found on the occupation deck in the crowd. No information yet of who this person is." This announcer added.

Lindsay's attention was drawn to the crown when she saw rope being thrown out. A figure started repelling down. Immediately she knew that the small pack spec was going out to take samples of the red paint. The helicopter got closer the spec and the station went to commercial. She changed channels again and the news anchor was babbling on about the history of the statue, but she was too busy watching an experienced detective flutter around the nose. The camera zoomed in and she almost dropped the remote. Right there in front of her eyes with her boyfriend dangling above Liberty Island. The crime was put on the back burner while she worried and begged for him to hurry and get back on solid ground.

**

"Incoming video conference," her phone told her. She rushed to her desk and sat in front of the computer. The confirmation box popped up and she accepted the video connection in Danny's image showed up.

"Montana…"

"Having fun out there fly boy?" She interrupted, but he looked puzzled. "Your evidence collecting was covered by the news."

"Fantastic, ya know I'm gonna get a phone call from Ma tonight." She nodded. He filled her in on what was found and that Mac was back in that everyone was needed in the lab.

**

Scenes from the show 'ER' played in her head. There was a scene in an episode where the whole staff was standing around watching a report of a horrible accident. They stood stock still and listen to the reporter go on about how many injured, how many dead, what the status was up at the location. And all the nurses scattered to prep the ER for the ambulances that were heading their way.

Lindsay and Adam guided the techs of the lab to double stock all the workstations and prep file folders for lab results and reports. It was a time of hurry up and wait. Everyone who is not dealing with current pressing evidence stood around the conference room watching the news coverage. They would call out when they caught a glimpse of somebody they knew. Mac's name was called out when he was seen. He and Stella were standing in the grass at the foot of the statue. Adam face turned green; if Lindsay hadn't called he would be in the trouble with the boss man. The dull headache from his hangover reminded him again of why he'd slept in.

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. Two uniformed officers pushed wheeled carts off. Four large plastic containers filled with evidence bags were rolled in. It was their version of an ambulance and all the patients on board needed to be dealt with.

**

It was almost endless. Officers brought in evidence and every machine whirled endlessly. A second body was found in another wave of evidence came in. The lab was divided into three teams: one team for any active case, one team for the first body and one team for the second body. Lindsay processed in sorted evidence. She kept fining the same substance and everything. She passed through all the tests and it was a common substance with an extra additive that she couldn't figure out. It was a puzzle left for later and she went on to other things.

**

The coffee was rich and strong. It was so soothing and comforting. It was rare, but she had the door to their office closed and it was quiet. The case was sensational and one of the first that she had worked that had made the national news. Strangely, Lindsay put all the hoopla behind her and researched the strange compound that was found everywhere.

"No way." She declared to no one. Her face was close to the monitor and she read more. Giggles bobbled up the notes were taken. She couldn't wait to share this information.

**

Danny let Hawkes drive the truck back to the lab. He'd ever so slightly overdone it on the scene. The muscles in his fingers and hand were tight and he stared out the side window while flexing and stretching the muscles. Hawkes caught the movement and questioned.

"You alright man?"

"Yeah, just sore. It's not often I'm called to scale the nose of the Statue of Liberty and it took more out of me than I thought it would." He popped a few aspirin.

"Let's get back and see what they have found out for us." Hawkes told him.

The parking garage was unusually full. A combination of a nationally publicized case and the boss man being back in the country had a lot of extra people on the job both in the lab and in the police station a few floors below.

Danny dropped the few remaining pieces of evidence off of the lab before heading to the locker room to change his shirt. In the office, he dropped off his kit and grubbed his lab coat. Each time he passed his girlfriend, she was working hard, but there was this Cheshire cat grin on her face.

**

They had a lead, the name of a woman that linked to a piece of the music box. Danny needed to get his jacket and meet Stella so they could go questioned her. It was later in the afternoon, he was well into his second shift of the day and the fog of tiredness was starting to overtake him. He had to do the combination twice before the locker finally opened. It seemed to him that it was a lot more difficult to put his jacket on. He checked. It was his locker, his jacket, but he noticed a white lab coat still hanging off his frame under his jacket.

He pulled himself free from his jacket and then took off his lab coat. A metallic clunk stopped him. A dull rolling sound drew his eyes to a small can that he'd totally forgotten about. After a lively explanation, one with an informative demonstration about condom spray, Lindsay tucked the rest of the can into his pocket. Danny moved it to a side pocket of his lab coat. Now the can laid on the floor the locker room and he was staring at.

The door opened and his boss came in. Mac noticed the can on the floor and the clothing pile in front of Danny that included his lab coat and his jacket on the bench. the can was picked up and Mac read the label very carefully.

"I don't know how things were going with me gone but you and Lindsay need to keep this kind of stuff out of my lab." The can was passed back to Danny. Danny couldn't formulate a thought, he couldn't focus. Mac exited the locker room. The door opened again.

"Messer, let's go." Stella's voice spurred him into action.

**

They all worked almost 48 hours straight. The only sleep they got was on the couch for short periods of time. They got two guys who responsible for the five murders. The train ride home was a blur. Steps became slower and slower. The sun was about to come up again and Danny hoped he could get a few hours sleep before having to go back in for his scheduled shift. Clothes were shed and Lindsay and Danny melted into the mattress.

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_What do you think?_


	57. Chapter 57

She was paged to the boss's office. Her phone beeped, she read his message and she dropped everything. It was odd to those around her but she just up and left once some tests were started.

Her mind went to the same thoughts of dread as when Stella had told her that they needed to talk. She smoothed her hair, adjusted her lab coat and her name badge. The door was in front of her way to quickly. She didn't have the time to question all the possibilities of why she was being summoned. Whatever it was brought Stella into the meeting also.

"Lindsay, have a seat." There was a file in front of him on the desk and had her name on it.

"When we talked on the phone two years ago, I was looking for a field investigator. Stella hired you on and didn't know that when I got back from London I was thinking about starting the search to fill the position again. I still plan on doing it, I just thought I might offer it to you first." When he stopped speaking his brow rose as if he was waiting for an answer. She looked more confused than ever to the two people sitting across from her in the office. "if… if you decide to do this you would have to shadow on a few cases and recertify to carry a weapon."

"I'll need to think about it, talk to Danny, and get his opinion. How long do I have?"

"The end of this week. On Monday I'll send out the paperwork to start the hunt for new applicants."

"Okay, I will get back to you as soon as I can."

**

"Dinner tonight. Pick me up at the lab." She wanted to talk to him; dinner tonight would be a great time. Mac's offer, his proposition was an obvious one. It makes sense that the next thing she would do would be to go out in the field. As a lab tech, she could fit all the pieces together. She couldn't place the evidence into the context of the scene. It was hard to imagine all the scenes from the Nova Kent case. She didn't have dive certification, but to the camera lens she got to see some of the investigation, it was harrowing, but she got to see it. The lab it been great, much more modern than lab back in Bozeman. There were gadgets, faster tests, better space, but nothing took the place of being out in the field, seeing the layout of the evidence, helping with the collection. And in the city who knew what kind of cases she might work.

**

"I want to become a field investigator." She blurted out before she reached him. He was picking her up for dinner and he was still a good five or so feet away from her. "Mac offered me the job this afternoon. I have a few things to do, a short probation period and then I guess I'd be a full-fledged New York police detective. I surprised you by taking the job at the lab, I wasn't a surprise you by showing up on a call."

He thought that she was the cutest thing in the world when she rambled. Her passion on the subject added to it; the way she cocked her head just so and gestured with her hands. Excitement danced in her eyes and nervousness-like hesitation could be heard in her voice.

"What do you think?" There was a very pregnant pause. She bounced in front of him and held onto the edges of his jacket. "Come on."

He scratched his brow searched her face for any doubt about what she had said and he saw none. Instead he saw the determined, more stubborn and determined look in her eyes.

"No." He swatted her hands away playfully and turned to walk away. He had to turn away, the shock on her face was humorous and he could only keep the smile off his lips for so long. His short stroll away from her forcefully ended when small hands were on his arm and pulling him around to look at her.

"What do you mean 'no'?" He received a small shove. "What makes you think you can just make a decision like that for me?" Another small shove. "I want to do this, I'm going to do this, and you're going to stop me." She was in his face and then gone, storming down the sidewalk. His phone was out in seconds and his feet started moving to follow her.

"Hey, hey wait up." He tried to keep up to see where she was going.

**

The diner door flew open. Instead of sitting in their usual booth she took a seat at the counter and ordered her usual. In a huff she slammed her bag on the counter and started rummaging through it. The bell above the door rang again and Danny walked in. Lindsay rolled her eyes and busied herself in her purse again. She had no idea what she needed, but it was better than dealing with Danny at the moment.

Food was delivered, purse was ignored, the seat next to her became occupied.

"Montana, I'm sorry. I was just messing with you." A small white card, one of Danny's business cards, was pushed across the counter to her. "I called Mac. There's an opening for you next Wednesday at the range for your recertification. I wrote the time and date down." She examined the card. "I really was just messing with you."

One little card. Denny's name was on one side and royal blue letters. His office phone number and the address the lab were printed under his name. The little white card was turned over on the counter top. She internally smiled his as his familiar letters and numbers told her where and when she needed to be at the range. At the bottom he added "I love you and good luck." She bumped him with her shoulder and all was well again.

**

She shadowed Stella on a case that turned out to be an accident. She shadowed with Hawkes on case about a man on in the large igloo cooler. The victim was dubbed Soupman. She went out with Mac on a couple of cases. It was becoming funny about how she and Danny never pulled the same case. Danny caught wind about an office pool about guessing the date that they might go out on an investigation together.

It wouldn't be a long wait.

**

"Danny, Lindsay you need to head out. The cab Flack drove hit the suspect's car and it needs to be processed. Stella's processing the apartment where the robbery occurred and Hawkes and I have a body to go see. Go"

In the truck Lindsay was all smiles. She was a great mood and almost dancing.

"You always like this on the way to a scene?"

"Oh, no. My mood has nothing to do with the case."

"It's me, you're excited to be out of the office with me."

"You're sweet. But no." Her mood was contagious, it was infecting and it was bugging the hell out of him because he didn't know the reason. It wasn't her birthday. It was even close to Christmas and nobody was coming in town to visit.

"You happy about going on the range this afternoon?"

"No, but I'm looking forward to it."

They got to the scene before he had the chance to push it any further.

**

"Mac, I need to take off for a while, my appointment for certification on weapon is today."

Okay, go on and then come back and pick up where you're needed."

**

Lindsay was out for the rest of her shift. Mac sent her a message to head home and start fresh the next day. By the time Danny came home she was asleep but the printout of the various exercises that she had to go through is on the kitchen counter and should made better than average shots.

**

They were playing the waiting game. Danny had trumped her with his comments about the contents of Batmobile's trunk and she had no weighty comeback.

"Hey Lindsay?" Another tech called for her attention at the door. "I was told to pass this on to you." And envelope was passed between the two. Danny wanted to give her privacy she could check out the contents, but the stack of about 20 $10 bills caught his attention.

"Monroe." Arms folded across his chest. "What's that for? Something I should know about?"

The money was quickly shoved back into the envelope, it was closed and securely tucked into her lab coat pocket. "Nope, just some extra earnings."

It played on his mind. How would she have earned that money, what was she doing to earn that money? Then it dawned on him. "You won the office pool about when we'd go out on a case together."

"Wow, nothing gets past you." Her eyes went to the metal piece in the tank. "Seems we have the serial number off that piece…"

**

It looked like a liquor store in the lab where she was doing her experiment to find blue flame. The lab was paying for all that she wanted to sit in on the audit meeting when Mac was asked why an employee of the city was able to buy large amounts of alcohol on city time with city money.

"Mac, I'm getting closer, but I do have something for you." Five of her new $10 bills were handed over to him. But he pushed her hand away.

"Keep it," he told her, "I knew which day you had on the office pool. Take Danny out for dinner go get a manicure or something."

**

"Flack in a penguin suit, this new girlfriend has you hoppin'." Danny laughed as his own joke. He hadn't left Flack alone about the new woman in his life. Each time they passed he had to say something.

"This is for Stella. I'm picking her up for the mayor's party tonight."

Danny was really confused. "Really? What about new girl?"

"Don't know." All talking stopped because Stella stepped out of the locker room. She was a beautiful sight.

"You ready Donnie?"

"As I ever will be. You look fantastic." She took his extended arm. "Night Messer."

Danny was lost in thought about Stella's name for Flack, the events that just happened in the hall and about dresses, mostly about Lindsay in dresses. He didn't see it often enough. He wanted to see it more. He wanted to see it cling to her body, accentuating all of the best parts of her. He wanted to see it flow as she moved. He really wanted to see it pulled up on the floor at the foot of their bed. Thoughts like that are keeping him from his paperwork and therefore keeping him from going home to her.

**

Lindsay didn't want to see another liquor bottle again. Green flames would forever be etched in her brain along with blue, purple, red, and white flames. Right then fire sucked. She pressed the button of the elevator and prayed that she didn't dream about fire.

"Montana…" she heard Danny and caught the door from closing. He said the only words that would make her forget about fire: they were going to go down and dissect the Batmobile.

**

It was past midnight. They boarded the train to go home. Even at the late… early… late… whatever… even at that hour there were enough people around to give them funny looks. Sure they were just trudging home after a few long shifts but they were also dirty. One can't take the car apart without getting a lot of grease, oil, brake fluid, or antifreeze on them. They had it in their hair, on their faces, on their clothes, and everywhere else. She was just hoping they had enough energy to shower before falling into bed.

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_This is starting to stall. I want to skip a lot of stuff and get to how I want it to end. But I am trudging through. Please be patient. Support is greatly appreciated. _

_Okay, I now have two other things going besides this one. One will be a multi chapter and the other was a one shot that I wrote while I was in Chicago._

_By the way, the Lt. Dan Band was well worth the 8 hour drive both ways. The whole event was worth it and am thinking of going back next year. _


	58. Chapter 58

_A/N: I am sorry, I fell off the world and into the Twilight Zone also known as a family reunion. I am back, have sought professional medical help and think that I am returning back to normal. _

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Her shift was over. The streets were bust and noisy, just like the thoughts in her head. So much had happened. There were little glimpses of hope for them, but then something reminded her of what happened and then the stone walks went up higher around her heart.

Rain started to fall in the city. The cold, heavy drops of water were a great contrast to the warmer air around her. She could feel it roll down her scalp. Drops went down her neck and under her shirt giving her even more of a chill. Soon the sensation of rain falling over her became part of the background noise and helped cover the stray tears that fell on her cheeks.

"Danny was never the same after the case in Amityville." She thought as she walked. It struck her that the Amityville case was six months ago. The case hit them both hard since her sister in law had just had her baby two months prior. Neither Danny nor Lindsay talked out loud about the case or the heavy emotions that came with it. Slowly time passed and she hoped things would get better and they did, only to get worse than ever.

A smile turned the corners of her mouth up as she walked further with no particular destination in mind. It was very refreshing to joke with him on the steps of the museum as they reenacted the murder. It was almost as if they were back to normal and the horrifying child case was behind them. In her mind she played the scene over and over: being held close, him manipulating her, poking him in the lower abs. "Wiseass" spoken in the think Danny Messer accent always cheered her up. Her 'Dennis the Menace' slingshot move helped the case but she also enjoyed the ability to show off a bit.

Thanksgiving weekend, they celebrated Mac's ordeal being over. Danny held her a little close during toasts as the family stood around their apartment and visited. That same weekend they selected their Christmas tree and decorated. Lindsay 'the energizer bunny' Monroe went into full action for the holiday. She was going to make every effort to have the perfect holiday.

Then Ruben died.

The things she did to help and comfort him were not enough. He didn't talk to anyone. He closed himself to all those around him. They passed at work and at home like strangers. What he didn't know was that she needed him as much as he needed what she was trying to offer.

Christmas Day was a disaster. They both made an effort to put everything behind them and carry on with the day. All went well until he found one of the gifts she had bought for Ruben under the tree and it went bad from there. She showed up to Stella's alone that night for the team Christmas gathering.

The incident with Rikki stealing his gun and the reckless disregard for the law was the final straw and she started staying at her uncle's house. Danny didn't notice for a few days and when he did, no big deal was made of it on his part. She hadn't moved out, just slept somewhere else.

Something seemed to change in the beginning of February and she got flowers on Valentine's Day. They went out for coffee at the end of their shift and pretended to talk. He was still haunted and did not open up and talk about anything important. It was all weather, sports, and about her family; they shared nothing about the emotions that were busting to come out. She slept on their couch that night.

Things appeared to be getting better. He'd throw sarcastic remarks in here and there as they worked. Danny and Lindsay joked lightly and they were cautiously in love. There was a dim light and she hoped it would get brighter. No discussion took place about the clouds over their heads and a wedge still was between them, but at least she could fall asleep in his arms again.

Hello April, not a good month.

He forgot her birthday and made some lame excuse about sports stats and steak sides. He never redeemed himself from that one before he slept with Rikki. He never told her with words, but after her morning phone call about meeting between shifts, he was cold to her. She knew him too well to think anything different; it was written all over his face when he sheepishly walked to her in the lab. It pissed her off royally that she had to defend her feelings to him as he compared her to a shallow clingy girlfriend. It made her want to spit nails at him. Falling out of love with him never happened, she tried, but it never happened.

It was back to Terrytown for her. It was the end, she could feel it.

Danny had done wrong. He never turned to her for help, for stability, or a shoulder. That was okay, everyone grieves differently. He slept with Rikki, but he did something worse. He straight out lied to her. Not anything dealing with a case, not as if he was not sure about something and was just wrong. He had told a story to mislead her and lie. Redemption was nowhere in sight. Forgiveness was far from her brain.

That does not mean that Danny didn't try. He greeted her each morning, it was nothing too over the top, just a friendly greeting, but each one was answered with an eye roll. She was mad and disappointed, but tried to keep her cool professionally. She made new habits guaranteeing that they wouldn't bump into each other out of work. It worked for a week. Then Quinn Shelby happened.

Danny was working with Lindsay. They laughed and joked back and forth about the shark case. Things were comfortable, then reality hit and Lindsay walked out. Quinn watched the exchange in the lab and reported the break in evidence protocol to Mac.

"I never should have taken this job. I should have known that working with someone I work with was not going to be good. It was stupid, really stupid." She told Mac when he stopped to talk to her. It caught her off guard and she didn't know what else to day.

Lindsay didn't know if she truly believed what she said. How could she have seen that this would be happening: love life in shambles and it was affecting her work? She left Mac standing in the garage considering her words and shaming herself for letting it interfere professionally.

Work came first, for two weeks work came first. Comments, pleads, and all non work communication was ignored, which is probably why he cornered her in the morgue the day before. All he wanted to do was talk. Where was he six months ago when that's all she wanted?

Three phone calls from him went unanswered as the rain still pounded over her head. He hadn't tried to call her outside of work for a while. It was curious to her why he was trying so hard.

Lindsay was soaked and didn't know where she was or how late it had become. The rain was heavy. Smart people, with umbrellas, walked passed her. Stores were dark and the only light came from scattered street lamps.

The phone in her pocket rang one more time. The caller didn't surprise her, but she answered this time.

"Hey," was how she answered the phone.

"Hey." The voice that came through her phone was thick and gravely. "Where are you?"

"I'm taking a rain walk. It's a Montana thing; you wouldn't understand."

"Maybe I would, maybe there are a lot of things I understand now."

"Yeah, like what?" She wanted to hear this.

"How sorry I am for pushing you away."

To her that's how all this started, he pushed her away rather than talking.

"Danny," she almost pleaded. "I tried to give you your space; I don't know how much long I can feel alone. It's messing with my work. It's breaking my heart." The last word almost came out as a sob.

"Yeah, I know, I know. I do.: It came out rushed. "I swear to God it won't happen again." He paused. The late hour was heard in his words. "The truth is…the truth is I miss you. I miss you more than I can say, even if I don't know how to say it."

The sincerity and warmth of his statement wrapped her tight and the cold she felt all night was gone.

"Do you know how hard you are to love?" A small light laugh was heard on her end.

"Why don't you come over and tell me in person…Please?"

Tempted, she was tempted to accept his invitation. "I gotta go."

She might have hung up on him, but the offer was still under consideration.

**

A knock at his door had Danny moving again. He was expecting it to be Rikki again, but instead opened the door to Lindsay and she was already babbling.

"The station was closed, other one too far away, apartment right here, couldn't take a cab…"

She looked like a drowned rat and she was nervously rambling. There are two ways to stop her motor mouth. He could slap her, but he was already on thin ice with her and a slap in the face could be going a tad bit too far, so he went with option two: kiss her. It didn't last very long but it spoke volumes.

He was mumbling something against her lips and she was trying to catch his.

"Why didn't you use your key?"

"Not really my place, would have been odd." The kiss worked and for a moment she was in a dream land. He words were spoken between attempts to find his lips.

"Go change, we have a lot to talk about." Her eyes opened and he was already in the kitchen making coffee.

Their bedroom was a mess. Clothes littered every flat surface and the bed was unmade. It was exactly how his room looked when they first started dating. It smelled like him, it felt like him and she missed it all.

**

Drawers opened and closed behind the closed door of their old room. Danny opened the cupboards to get the mugs and poured their coffee. He doctored both with cream and sugar to each other's liking and settled on the couch. He had no idea of what was going to happen next.

Hints of Lindsay in the apartment were all around and it gave him comfort, but he was in the doghouse and he needed to find a way out. He wanted Lindsay back in his life, not just the reminders of what they had.

She cleared her throat. He hadn't noticed her come in. It was a shame; his academy tee shirt never looked so good.

"I wanted your attention." She told him from the hall.

"You have it."

She meandered to the couch and sat on the opposite end facing him. "We have not been completely open with each other. We pushed each other away. I've missed you, more than words could ever express. If this is ever going to work, it's time to stop pushing and talk to each other. Before you start you need to know that I am spending the night. No matter what happens or what we say, it's too late for me to go back to my Uncle's so I am staying here and you are sleeping on the couch. Start talking, I'm listening." And she was. She was listening for one specific thing. The couch was soft and the mug was warm in her hands. Ears were open and she looked at him expectantly.

"Okay…time to open up and be up front about things. I slept with Rikki." Might as well get it out there. But she didn't say anything. There was no change in her posture or facial expression. She was waiting for more. She didn't cringe, yell, or anything. "I was lost after Ruben was murdered. I was drowning in guilt. She was in the hall one night when I got off shift; didn't want to go into her place. She was drinking and wandering the halls. We came up here to talk. She knew what I was feeling because it was the same thing. I drank with her and didn't fight off her advances and we slept together. In that brief moment I forgot everything." He stopped again waiting for heated words on her end, but got nothing. "It was the night of Stella's apartment fire. She was here when you called for lunch; I gave you a story about my plans for the morning because she was still here. But you knew something was up, I got the dirt treatment that day from you and I deserved every minute of it. I'm sorry."

She crossed the open space between them and kissed his cheek. It was light but deliberate.

"What was that for?" He was confused. He just confessed that he slept with someone else and she kissed him. The skin still tingled from the affectionate contact.

"The beginning of forgiveness. Keep talking. What happened after Halloween night?"

He had to think back to the case, it wasn't hard. "Kid cases are hard for me. First there was the case at Halloween and then…" Something in his lap was very interesting and the sentence trailed off.

"Ruben died." She finished for him.

Extra weight seemed to be added with those two words and his head bobbed up and down. "I was racked with guilt, I was unsure and scared. The easiest thing to do was to push everything away."

"Why did you feel guilty?"

Danny gave her a pointed look of disbelief. "Really?" It was exploding with sarcasm.

"Why…Did…You…Feel…Guilty?"

A huge intake of air filled his lungs as he prepared to answer, and then let out quickly. "Ruben was with me. He was my responsibility. I put something else before him. I put my job before the life of a child and that child died. A woman lost her only child on my watch. That future of that family ended that day."

Lindsay took his hands in her. She found his sorrowful eyes with hers and kept contact as she spoke in soft even tones. "Even if you were with him when the first signs hit or when he collapsed, it still would have been too late. Sid said all that."

"If we stayed at the church three extra seconds, or if we hit that block a minute later…"

"You can 'what if' for the rest of your life and still not make any progress."

"Rikki said something to that effect earlier."

She moved back to her end of the couch. "Rikki was here earlier?"

"To say goodbye, she needs a fresh start. She's moving."

Silence.

Lindsay had to focus on what he said. A curious look crossed her face. "You said you were unsure and scared of something."

"I'm not sure if there is a future for us. I am terrified about what kind of father I would be and I am unsure if you would even want to have a family with me still."

Silence again, only this time Lindsay was on the move to sit on the coffee table in front of him.

"Everything surrounding Ruben's case was out of your hands. The things that did happen in no way dictate what kind of father you are going to be. You were the closest thing that he had to a dad for a while. I look forward to having your baby…if we get back to that point."

An invisible weight lifted and a few tears escaped from his eyes.

"Not yet, we will have a time to cry together in a minutes. It's my turn for openness." She went back to the her spot and he turned against the arm of the couch for a backrest. "You took me for a ride. I have been to the top of the mountain and the bottom of the garbage can these last few months. You broke my heart, confused me. You left me hanging when I lost a friend. I had no one to hold my hand. I had no one to tell me that it would be alright. I was so mad. I was waiting for you to come around, but you didn't. In a few short weeks you tore down every ounce of support and trust that we built. You slept with Rikki, but worse than that, you opened your mouth and lied. That was your biggest doghouse moment. Grief does some strange things, I have dealt with it too many times to know that first hand, but you never lied to me like that before."

It was his turn to close the gap and get closer. Her hands looked so small in his. Her forehead brushed him and their eyes fluttered. She heard his voice. It was almost a breath, but it also sounded like a prayer and a promise. It only made it to her ears and no further.

"I'm sorry."

There are words in the English language that are powerful, but none more powerful to her at that moment than those. It was the most delicate thing she had ever heard. And they cried. They cried for Ruben. They cried for Rikki. But mostly they cried for the pain that was caused. She held onto him as they trembled in sorrow, he held onto her as reassurance that things would get better.

Danny did sleep on the couch that night, he fell a while later in emotional exhaustion. Curled into his side, wrapped in his arms was Lindsay, who slept on the couch.

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_A/N #2: I wrote and rewrote and rewrote. It became long winded, and shallow, over and over and over so it came out at that instead. It's not the best, but I am ready to move on. Please forgive me and keep reading._

_If you liked it, I toiled and sweat over this to make it perfect. If you didn't like it...my brother wrote it. Let me know either way._


	59. Chapter 59

_Wow. You guys came in with the reviews on that last chapter. What did I do different to get such a reception? Here is some healing fluff. Enjoy!!_

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Some days went by; they began opening up with each other. There were no more secrets. Lindsay talked to Danny about ranch life and tough cases she worked in Montana. Danny told her more about growing up and his days playing baseball. She was surprised when he started talking about Aiden and the deep relationship they had. Danny and Lindsay's deep discussions and long hours laying on the couch listening to each other, erased lines and boundaries that had formed between them.

People noticed in the lab that they were getting along better. They saw the chilliness go away. It wasn't the same as before, but it was getting better. Mac and Stella found it easier to have them work together. They began bouncing ideas off of each other, helping out with lab stuff and Lindsay started hanging around after her shift to wait for him.

Things were looking up.

**

Sunday morning he woke up alone. Worse than that, they were going to see his parents for lunch for the first time in months. Each time his parents called, he made up some excuse each time about work and cases, being busy with friends or not feeling well. There was no way he was going to tell them the truth when they called. Lindsay suggested they go this week as part of getting back into a routine. He wasn't so sure, but he'd do anything.

**

"Danny, Lindsay, I didn't hear you come in." Lindsay could tell from his posture that he was trying to stay unnoticed and as small as he could since they got out of the car. He crept up the front steps and into the house. She wondered if he wanted to surprise his parents. She also wondered how many times he used to sneak into the house as a kid after staying out too late. Their cover was blown then Mama Messer saw them try to silently enter the kitchen.

"Hi Ma." His voice was still timid. She suddenly realized one of two things: Either his parent knew nothing about the last few months and he was trying to hide it, or they knew only a fraction of the details and he was ashamed of what happened.

"Danny, can I talk to you out in the living room?" There wasn't much of a choice for him; he was out of the kitchen before Lindsay's question was finished. In hushed tones, words fired out of her mouth. "What have you told your parents about what has been going on between us?"

"When they would call about Sunday lunch, I would tell them that we were busy with work or other prior arrangements. I came on a few Sundays alone." But there was something else.

"And…"

"I think I called her a couple times, late at night after drinking. I don't remember what I said. I don't remember when I called or what she said to me."

Lindsay got giddy inside. "Oh, this should be good." She told him while pulling him back to the kitchen. "You know if we ever break up for good, they're gonna keep me."

They entered the kitchen again and Lindsay boisterously greeted Mama Messer. Danny greeted her. "Hey Ma, where's pop?"

"He's out on the patio tending to the grill. Lindsay why don't you go out and say hi." Danny noticed he wasn't told to go out, but he tried to sneak out. "Oh no, Daniel. You stay here and help me out."

**

Lindsay quickly embraced Danny's dad and greeted him warmly, but then she put a finger to her lips and pointed to the sliding door that she left open a few inches. Mr. Messer closed the grill and the two took a seat at the patio table to listen to what was happening a few feet away inside.

**

"Ma, what can I do to help?" Hands were freshly washed and sleeves were rolled to his elbows.

"You can sit your butt down in that chair and tell me what's been going on." He knew it was coming. It was the interrogation he didn't ever want to do. Automatically he took the seat the table that was his from childhood. "Are you sober?"

"Wha…Ma what kind of question is that?"

"The last three times you called me you were drunker than a skunk and bawling like a baby. Do you even remember what you said?"

"Not really."

"After the things that you said, I was kinda surprised to get your request for lunch today. I was more shocked that Lindsay was coming with you." She had a knife pointing at him in one hand and the other hand on her hip.

"I don't even want to know what I said do I?"

"No! So before I kick you to the street and then enjoy a lovely lunch with my new daughter, you better start talking."

"I guess the short version is that Ruben, you remember Ruben," he mother nodded, "well he was killed while I was takin' him to get his bike blessed. There was a robbery and he was between the shooter and the robber and um…the owner shot at the robber and hit Ruben instead. Out of grief and drunkenness I slept with his mother, Rikki and then lied totally to Lindsay about it."

A gasp could be heard from the patio and when Mama looked out the window over the sink she could see Lindsay nodding at Papa Messer to verify that what Danny said was true.

"Why is she here with you today?" Mama still looked out the window at the young woman.

"I don't know that answer. We talked for a long time and we are taking things day by day."

Mama walked behind him to get the plates out of the cupboard and smacked him hard in the back of the head.

"Ow! What was that for?" The offending area was rubbed.

She got right behind him, hands on the back of his chair, and spoke quietly in his ear.

"If you do anything to hurt her again, hunting for your body will take the same amount of effort to find, as Jimmy Hoffa's and I think your buddies at work would be more than glad to help." There was a firm hand squeezing his shoulder to drive the point home. The sweet lady he knew as his mommy returned. "Now, go out and visit with your father. Send Lindsay in. Take the stakes out there with you."

"Yes ma'am."

Mama watched each of his movements carefully. He took the plate of meat for the grill out and handed them to his dad. He then crouched down next to Lindsay's chair and got really close. Forehead to forehead, words were exchanged along with a quick embrace of their lips. Lindsay's fingers went through his hair while she stared into his eyes. One more kiss was shared and Lindsay got up and came into the house.

Mama greeted her at the door with a hug big enough to take down a bear. "Honey, why didn't you call?" Tears came to Lindsay's eyes for the first time in a couple of days. The warmth and support from Danny's mother was monumental.

"I don't know; I just hoped time would get us through and then it just got worse." Their hug ended and Lindsay took the seat Danny was just sitting in.

"Tell me what happened, Danny told me the short version." Mama went back to work quietly so that she could still listen to the story.

"When did I see you last?"

"Thanksgiving weekend. Danny told us you have to work Christmas and he brought the gifts. Then it was work and other stuff."

Lindsay let out a huff. "To me, it started with the case we worked on Halloween…" Lindsay would have gone on, but Mama marched across the kitchen and out the door. Moments later Lindsay heard Danny exclaim "Ow!" and then Mama returned. Lindsay kept talking as if nothing happened.

"Ruben died two weeks before Christmas…" Lindsay went on to tell Mama the events of the months that she wanted to forget. Mama only went out two more times to smack Danny in the back of the head.

The rest of the afternoon went fine and no other head trauma happened. On the way home her hand rested on his on the center console. His hand turned over and their fingers laced together. It was a life line for each to hold on to.

**

"Stop. Right. There." The words could have stopped the charge of a bull elephant. Danny's bare feet came to a halt in the hall. He didn't even know what he could have done wrong. They got home from his parents house and he excused himself to shower. He didn't leave his dirty clothes on the floor, and he had dried enough that he wasn't leaving foot prints in the hallway on the way to get dressed.

He was too busy thinking and didn't realize that Lindsay was right behind him. Fingertips traced the paths that the beads of water had taken down his back. The first touch made him flinch but soon he was almost pushing back into her. She followed line after line down his back, stopping at the navy blue towel where the water was absorbed at his waist. Soon more than one finger touched at time, until both hands were running up and down the plain of his back.

"I have missed touching you. I have missed the freedom of being able to just walk up and manhandle you in any way that I wanted to."

He stood stock still and clutched the towel to keep it from dropping to the floor. Not that it would have been a bad thing, but he wasn't going to make that bold of a move. He was going to wait for her to write out in big neon letters that she was ready to restart an intimate relationship.

Her hands went to his shoulders and down his bare, damp arms; one hung at his side and the other around front still holding onto that navy blue towel for dear life. Her hands glided backup to his strong shoulders, over and down his chest as far as she could reach, and then back up.

Danny was dying. Teeth were clenched, eyes were shut. Caresses were growing in intensity and he was going to accept anything more that she did as the sign he was waiting for. Its wasn't a neon light but at this point who cared. He wanted to catch both hand and hold them above her while he devoured her lips and neck. He wanted to drop the towel and pin her again the wall with his hips; that would be the beginning of their second chance of other things. The months that had passed left him craving Lindsay like a man in the desert seeking water.

From behind him, Lindsay came flush against his back. Heat radiated through him from her. The heat made his mood intensify. The feeling of her body plastered against him was fantastic. It was turning out to be a good night.

"Something happened while you were in the shower." The words were silk. They suggested that for him the world was about to turn upside down and he would share pleasures with her not felt for a long time.

"Really?" He words were equally suggestive.

"Yeah."

"Do tell." The dance of words had started.

"Stella called. She invited me out for drinks her and Angell. I didn't want to leave without telling you. I'll be home late." And she was gone.

Leaving him standing in the hallway with that navy blue towel still wrapped around him.

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_Please send your encouragement, I have to start work again tomorrow. Meetings at school start tomorrow. That DOES mean that I have more time to write however. Send your reviews and feedback._


	60. Chapter 60

_I bet you were wondering 'why don't she write?' School started, two kids got sick. Then I noticed that I hadn't written for a while so I made the time to sit down and write. So here it is. _

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Mama knocked some sense into him. It hurt, he had the lumps to prove it and by Wednesday he had a plan. But Wednesday came and the city was thrown into chaos by the so called "Cabbie Killer." His Wednesday plans were pushed to Thursday, then Friday and finally to Saturday. He hoped things would work out. Saturday morning he waited for her to leave for work and then he got to work.

**

"Dinner and a movie tonight" her phone told her. It wasn't anything new, it happened about once a week, but it was never announced like this. It was something that just took place on nights when nothing else was going on.

Focused on getting home from an abbreviated Saturday shift, she hustled through her work.

**

Danny spent the morning hunting his favorite places for the ingredients for dinner. He was nervous, almost as nervous as the night of their first dates. He was going to try and woo her like he had at the beginning of their relationship and he was nervous.

Satisfied with his purchases he headed home. Once there he showered, dressed and got back to the kitchen. From scratch he started a meat sauce. Lindsay arrived home just as the spaghetti pasta went into boiling water.

"Hey!" He called to her, but she didn't hear it. She was too busy staring at the man in the kitchen. From head to toe, he was perfection. Barefoot, in her favorite jeans on him, that green shirt that deliciously outlined his chest and arms. He was cleanly shaved smooth and there was nothing in his hair to style it; perfect for running her fingers through. He moved in the kitchen to a rhythm that only he heard, gliding between stations he had set up. A small red and white checkered dish towel was thrown over one shoulder and his hands went up to it often to wipe them clean.

"Um…hi." She tried to recover, but failed. Danny already achieved one goal, she enjoyed the extra effort he put into his appearance. A ghost of a smile appeared and disappeared before she could see it and he kept working. "Wow, it smells fabulous here. What's the occasion? Usually dinner and a movie is take out and something from the RedBox."

"Not at the beginning. We used to work on dinner together and talk. Tonight, I'm making dinner we can talk. Then we are going to find a movie and you are going to curl up on the couch in my arms."

Looking the way he did, he could have told her to go paint the bathroom pink and she would have. "I'm going to change and I'll come back to help." Lindsay leaned back a bit to take one more peek at him around the side of the counter when he moved away and then she left the kitchen.

Lindsay was having a harder time than usual. She didn't want to change. She wanted to strip naked and call Danny to the bedroom. She wanted to know if he tasted as good as he looked. A deep breath had to be taken into her lungs to calm and clear her head. Finding something to wear, she changed quickly and joined him back in the kitchen.

Danny watched her return over the top of his glasses. "Um, Linds…I think you went diggin' in the wrong drawer. That's my Giants jersey you got on."

"It smells like you and looks good on me."

"You got that right." The words barely left his lips.

"I have a question."

"Shoot." He moved around, still working as she took a seat on a stool.

"Why don't you call me Montana anymore?"

She waited quietly. His motions paused while he thought. "Don't know. I know that it annoyed you and I guess over the passed months, I fell out of the habit. Why?"

"Hawkes called me 'Montana'. He said that it slipped out and apologized, but I've missed hearing it." Her delicate fingers played with the edge of a placemat on the breakfast bar. Danny was about to say something but the timer went off and the final dinner preparations started.

Smiles were shared, soft touches were exchanged. They still not had sex, slept together, made love…whatever…since they had "gotten back together" They flirted like they always had, but timing was not on their side in the last week or so for them to fall passionately into bed together.

Plates were filled and dinner was enjoyed. Danny grew more nervous. He felt like a teenager trying to get his first kiss.

They cleaned up from dinner in the close quarters of the small kitchen. There was static building, a small electric charge passed between with each new brush, flirty glance, and touch. Leftovers were closed up and put away in the fridge. The second she closed the refrigerator door, her back was up against it and her lips were being energetically explored. Nothing else touched her other than his mouth and that was enough. What at first took her by surprise soon was making her head spin and her heart soar. He slowly took his time exploring and playing. Danny changed angles and intensity and Lindsay went along for the ride. His two hands held him away from her body and rested on the fridge door. Minutes, hours, hell maybe even days went by, she didn't care. Soon she was pushing him back to the sink with her lips and hands. He'd had the lead for a while, but she took over. The power could go out, the lab could try and call, and the sky could fall, it didn't matter. She was going to stand in the kitchen and make out with her boyfriend.

She didn't stay on his lips like he stuck with hers. She had to see if his jaw line was as smooth as it looked. Her lips left his and they gently, slowly skimmed across his face. She found something smoother than silk where her face met his neck. It was soft and delectable. Her efforts tripled when a low growl came from his throat. He still wasn't touching her. His hands landed on the counter behind him when his backside hit the counter in front of the sink.

Her exploration stopped. He was trying to say something. "Let's…let's go watch the movie. I have something special to watch."

"Oh, really?" The flirt in her voice was thick. He took his spot on the couch and she tucked under one arm, head on his chest. He turned on the TV and the menu from Godzilla played. "Again?"

"Yeah, it reminds me of the beginning and it's a good movie." He hit play. The opening credits started. She was pulled closer and his fingers played with the bare skin on her arm. Goose bumps appeared and she shivered.

"Hang on. I'll be right back." Lindsay stood up and turned off all the light around them. The only light in the apartment came from the TV and a lamp in the bedroom. Lindsay took her position back at Danny's side and he started the movie again. One of her hands snaked through the arm of his shirt and rested on his chest.

The TV should have been turned off. Neither of them was watching it. Godzilla was being ignored. Their eyes were pointed towards the flickering images, but some of their other senses were being used more.

She was lightly smoothed down the muscles of his chest with her fingers. Her hand came out of his shirt and touched him. She was memorizing him through her fingers. She couldn't help but let her hand wander over him; his shoulders, his arms. When a hand came to rest on his jean covered thigh, he pulled her closer at the waist.

His nose caught the mix of scents that were uniquely Lindsay. Peach shampoo and the spiciness of gingerbread lotion danced around her. Danny buried his nose in her hair and he pulled the scent into his system. The smell gave him comfort. The lotion gave him another feeling altogether. It was a signature. It meant that time had been taken recently, very recently, to shave her legs. She always used the gingerbread stuff after shaving her legs. She said the scent reminded her of something, but he couldn't remember. He just knew that he loved how the smell lingered on the sheets and his body after they had been together. The smell of the lotion was strong and he ran a hand along her legs to see how smooth they were. He found silky satin under his fingers.

She gasped when his hand started smoothing over her legs and his ears picked it up. His fingers ran up and down any skin he could find and she let out the most arousing sounds. He added his own moans when her hand started moving up his thigh.

Lindsay climbed onto his lap, arms around his neck. Desire filled his eyes. His warmth burned her everywhere and she wanted more. It was an exquisite feeling that she missed and yearned for. The closer she got, the more she burned.

"I need to hear it. It's been so long." She pleaded, inches from his face. She dove in for a full kiss and then pulled away. "Please tell me." She went in for another kiss and then backed away.

"I love you." Danny, eyes hooded went in for a kiss, but she evaded.

"I love you too…so much, but that's not what I want to hear, cowboy." She fell forward, nudged by his hands on her back and she landed on his lips for another kiss. She could feel the smile on his face. Hands pressed her into his body then worked under her shirt and roamed her back.

"Linds, you are the greatest thing that ever happened to me." Her shirt was whisked up her body and tossed aside.

"Danny, thank you, but I still want to hear it." She pulled him forwards enough to make his shirt disappear and join the one she was wearing.

"Monroe, I am so lucky to have you in my life." Again she was up against him, this time skin to skin.

"Messer, you feel so good, but I'm not getting up or doing much of anything else until I hear what I want to hear from your lips." She didn't get up, but she wiggled and moved in his lap. The pain of pent up pleasure was building. Her voice changed and fire hit every nerve with her next words. "I know what you want, and you know what I want to hear."

He smiled and took it back immediately, a whisper lower than a whisper passed his lips and she missed it.

"One more time cowboy." Her head turned and she leaned in really close to hear.

"I love you…" She almost pulled away, but he held her to him. "…Montana."

Flood gates opened, tension left and time stopped. Slowly Danny straightened on the couch and enveloped her into his body. She read the emotion in his eyes; she felt it from her body.

A trail of discarded clothes littered the short distance from the couch to the bedroom. Pillows were thrown from the head of the bed to the floor. Danny covered Lindsay's body with his and her legs naturally went around him. He knew in the morning traces of her would be all over him. For many unending hours they tumbled in passion. For many unending hours they reconnected and renewed promises. More gasps and moans were released along with sighs and giggles. Their symphony was the only music they needed.

Sleep came in the predawn hours. The cuddled up and drifted off to sleep at odd angles on the bed partially covered by a sheet. Danny mumbled out loud in that place between asleep and awake. "My Montana."

Lindsay gently patted his chest. "That's right cowboy…Your Montana." And sleep took her.

**

Hot water made some of the soreness go away. The water pouring over Danny's face helped wash away the tears he still shed the next morning; tears of joy and tears of relief. Whatever they were, they were the last bit of emotion he had left to release before things went back to normal. The tears were the last bit of doubt that he had. After the vigorous activities of the night before, there was no doubt left in his heart and head that all would be fine. He let the shower run and he stood under it. Chilly hands held onto him from behind and he deflated into the body behind him.

"Morning. I thought we might conserve water this morning."

"I love the way you think."

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_Tension gone...for now. Was it fluffy enough. Was it enough of a reunion? Let me know...Feed the need...the need for reviews._


	61. Chapter 61

_I am so sorry for the delay. School has left me wiped at the end of the day. I have been very unmotivated and need inspiration._

_I hope you enjoy._

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**For purposes for my story, **_**Hostage**_** and **_**Veritas**_** both happen in September when Veritas aired.**

The city seemed to ease a bit in the days and weeks after the "Cabbie Killer" was caught. Routines and habits started to fall into place in Danny and Lindsay's lives. Typical days started with an alarm, shower and a cup of coffee on the go. She made a point to start conversations on the way to work to help learn more about him and make that connection again. He caught on quickly and then would turn on the conversation around on her. At the elevator each day they shared one more kiss. The kiss would turn off their private life and turning on their professional ones.

At the end of shift, one would wait for the other and they kissed at the elevator again to swap the professional role for the private. On the way home their cases were discussed, theories were bounced. They would stop and grab a bite to eat somewhere or pick out ingredients and make dinner together.

Once the sun went down, they relaxed on the couch reading, watching TV or talking. The nights always ended with Danny and Lindsay snuggled together in bed.

Spring was in the air, life was good and things were comfortable again.

**

"What would you do if one day I just sprang a marriage proposal on you?"

She had to stop herself from spraying the sip of coffee, which she just took, all over the sidewalk in front of them. It was the last thing she expected to hear during their walk from the train to Police Plaza. The coolness of the late May morning still hung in the air and Lindsay was being held tight to Danny's side. It was a topic that was nowhere in her brain. She looked at him sideways. "Is this you asking me to marry you?"

"No, we just haven't talked about it in a while."

"Well, if you were to ask me to marry you, it would have to under the right circumstances, the right touch of planning and vast amounts of cheesy romance."

"So using the Jumbotron at a Yankees game would be out?"

"Yes."

"What about in the middle of a crime scene with me down on one knee?" He pulled away and pantomimed the action.

She was giggling at the image. "I think Mac would fire you for unprofessionalism but then rehire you the next day."

Danny got quiet while they walked and she knew he was thinking about something.

"I could always ask you the way Pop asked Ma."

This peaked her interest, she only knew a little of his family's past. "How was that?"

"He asked her in the cemetery."

Lindsay didn't know what to think. Again it was the last option and possibility she would have come up with. She was almost afraid to ask. With what little she did know about his background, this didn't sound like any romantic way for anyone to be asked to marry anyone else. "Why?"

"Ma was not what Pop's family wanted for him, but he loved her and wanted to have a life with her. He got permission from Grand Pap and took her out one beautiful spring day to the graveyard to take a walk." Danny and Lindsay reached work, but she stopped him from entering the building. "He showed her the area where our family is buried. With a ring in one hand he told her told her that if someday it was going to end there in that spot then it should probably start there. He got down on one knee and she accepted."

"Wow." She was still formulating her thought about the story she had just heard.

"Yeah. Come on, we're almost late." He headed into work and she followed.

**

Rather than letting the topic of their conversation get shuffled back into her memory, it was now the thing pondered while waiting for test to run. It was the topic that kept her in the shower a few extra minutes each morning. It was the topic that had her staring into space a few days later when Adam entered the office.

"Lindsay…Lindsay, there was a call for you, but you didn't answer." Snapping back from la la land she checked her phone and saw the missed three calls. The number was not recognizable. The area code was Montana, though. Adam handed her a post-it with Stella's handwriting on it. The same phone number from her cell was written out with a short note: "Call your Mom."

Lindsay dialed the number, listened to the rings and a woman answered. "Admissions." Lindsay was puzzled.

"Hi, I've gotten a few phone calls from this number and then a message to call my mother."

"What's the name dear?"

'Dear,' no one says that in New York. There's never enough time during a conversation. "My name is Lindsay Monroe."

"Let me check." The sound of fingers on a keyboard and a few clicks of a mouse were heard on her end. "Yes, I've got a Bill Monroe as a patient here, let me transfer you."

'Patient' was not a good word to hear, especially after three missed calls on her cell and a message from her boss. Fear filled every atom of her body and the time it took for the admission lady to transfer her was taking way to long. She needed to get someone to pick up the phone and tell her what was going on.

"Hello?"

"Mom?"

"Lindsay?"

"What's going on Mom?"

"Your father fell." It came into her ears as if it was the most absurd thing.

"Okay…"

"He was working in the barn and he fell from the ladder. He broke his leg in about three places when he came down on it and then sprained his wrist when he tried to break his fall. I'm in his room, but he's in surgery right now."

"What was he doing up on a ladder? You know that never ends well."

"I know but you know your father. If something needs to be done, he takes care of it."

"When did this happen?"

"Early this morning. When I went out to get him for lunch I found him on the ground. I thought maybe he'd had a heart attack."

"I'll see what I can do and maybe come out for a few days to help out."

"We're going to be in the hospital tonight and maybe another night. There's no rush, but if you can spare a few days that would be great. You know how things are when your father's not 100%."

Lindsay ran through the memories from growing up when her father was sick or hurt. She remembered when he had the flu. He lay curled up at the end of the couch whining. When he broke a bone in his hand while fixing the tractor, he stood around and gave orders and then whined when it wasn't done right. None of the memories she had of her father being less than his best were pleasant.

Adam showed back up with another from Stella. Lindsay listened to her mother as she went on about what the doctors said and Lindsay tried to read the note at the same time. "You're on vacation through Sunday. I don't want to see you for the next four days. See you Monday. Stella and Mac."

"Well Mom, I was just handed a note telling I have the next few days off. I'll be there when I can." They said their goodbyes and hung up.

**

The plane took off and Lindsay was amazed at what she got done in the three and a half house after hanging up with her mother. She called Danny, made flight arrangements and packed. Sitting back in her seat she braced herself for the next few days at home away from Danny. But first she had to get through the flight.

**

When Danny's keys hit the bottom of the bowl on the counter, the sound echoed around the apartment, the empty apartment. The phone call from Lindsay in the middle of his shift told him that she was leaving town for a few days. The echo in the apartment told him she was gone. He checked the time and she wouldn't have landed yet, so he couldn't call. A white piece of paper lay on their shared work space. Curiosity moved him.

_Cowboy, I may be on my way to Montana but I'd rather be here in New York with you. I'll only be gone for a few days; it will fell like a million, but keep my spot on the couch warm. We have a date Sunday night. Stay busy and I'll be back before you know it. – Montana_

Her words both excited and saddened him. He took the letter into the bedroom and placed it on the table on her side of the table. Her fell into the blankets and traces of Lindsay puffed up from the bed. He breathed it in and drifted to sleep and dreamed of Montana.

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_Need feedback. Need inspiration. _

_Where will this go? What will happen when they come back together?_


	62. Chapter 62

_I hang my head in shame. It has almost been two weeks since I have published a chapter and all I have to bring you is what is written below. I will tell you that the next chapter is written...it needs to be typed and edited and retooled and then published, but the words are there. It is the summer between season 4 and 5 and I am filling the long months until the two part season ender/premiere. Somethings are changing and you know at some point that sweet little baby girl is concieved. Stay tuned. _

_I do have to share with those who are still out there that I am still amazed daily by you. I still get e-mails from new readers and from those of you who have just recently added this story to favorites, me to your favorite author list, and more. I am humbled and inspired by your kind words of encouragement. _

_I am currently in need of sleep and feedback. I hope to be back soon. _

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Loud music played. The voice of people out on a Friday night, relaxing after a long work week added white noise to the bar. Flack was once again trying to hold onto a marginal loss in the game of pool he was shooting against his best friend. A case they worked the last few days closed and they were out celebrating, or at least Flack thought so. Mr. "Doom and Gloom" was staring so hard at the green felt, Flack was sure that a hold was going to appear.

"What's going on with you tonight?"

"I screwed up."

Flack didn't like the sound of this. "Yeah?" The pool table was forgotten as his attention turned to his friend and the drink in his hand.

"I put myself in a position that could've lost me the greatest thing that ever happened to me."

"In the last 24 hours?" Flack couldn't believe that in the short hours that Lindsay was gone to see her family; Danny had once again gone and done something stupid.

"No, back in the winter."

"All that's passed man, why you talking about it now?"

"The apartment's empty again. That idea alone makes me think about it."

"But everything's alright now." It was more of a question than a statement and the detective waited a long time for a response.

"Yeah." Danny shrugged.

"I hear a 'but' in there somewhere."

"We're okay, but its still not the same."

"What do you mean?" He hoped the question sounded casual enough, but it sounded forced.

"She's guarded, as if she's waiting for the other shoe to drop, not totally opening up to us being back together or something."

"Do you blame her?"

"Naw, not really."

"Is there something you can do about it?"

Again an answer took way too long to come. "Give it time." Danny drained the last gulp from his glass.

"Is it worth it?" Flack asked. He was going to make a point, but Danny was looking at his phone. "Dann-o?"

"Yeah?" The smirk on Danny's face told Flack that Danny was not just checking out the time on his phone.

"What does Monroe have to say?" he tried to peek around to catch a glimpse of his friends phone. Flack did not expect Danny to hold it out for him to see. He read 'Your cat is in my garden.' "What does that mean?"

"It means that Montana's thinking of me and that I need to get outta here to get home to call her." The space next to Flack was suddenly empty. Danny pulled a few bills from his wallet. "What were you asking me a few minutes ago?"

"I asked if it was worth it."

Without a moment's hesitation Danny answered. "Hell, yeah." Danny then became part of the crowd on the street.

**

The weekend passed quickly for Lindsay because she was busy. Her mother was keeping her father comfortable and occupied while Lindsay worked around the house. Long hours were spent in the sun tending to the ranch and odds and ends that her father would usually do. She loved how the sun's warmth would kiss her skin while she worked. She missed New York, but she wasn't heartbroken to be home. The landscape around her was beautiful and open. When the sun went down, the stars came out to see her and the moon joined the gathering.

Lindsay's thoughts about police work, the city, Danny, Montana, friends, summer, and her life started to run wild. She questioned her relationship, her job, even the place she was living. She analyzed the choices in her life and wondered if she would be happier is a change was made. Each possibility was considered. Staying in Montana, changing jobs… Her thoughts consumed her until her head was spinning and she couldn't remember where she started. The one thing she didn't want to change was Danny. It was what she cherished the most. It was like breathing, it came naturally…the thought of him, not the relationship. That was not a change she was willing to make. That's why she was sitting on that airplane again, this time heading east.

**

"You going to pick up Lindsay at the airport today?" Mama Messer asked.

Just because Lindsay was out of town, that didn't mean that he got to skip Sunday lunch. Mama was starting to clean up from their meal while he still sat at the table and digested the feast he enjoyed.

"Yeah, she gets in this afternoon."

"You takin' her flowers?"

He understood the comment more as a suggestion and not a question. "Now I am."

"You makin' her dinner?"

"Yeah."

"How are things going?"

"Come on ma…." Her look from across the kitchen told him she was still waiting for an answer. "Things are good."

"Have you guys put everything behind you?"

"Have you been talking to Flack?"

Mama looked surprised. It was a name that she hadn't heard for a while. "No, why?"

"He's been asking me the same questions."

"How is Donnie?"

Danny chuckled. "He's old enough to walk out when you call him Donnie."

"He'll always be Donnie to me." She went back to her work at the sink.

It was under his breath, but he couldn't stop it from coming out. "…and not many others."

**

His police power didn't do squat for him this time. He had to wait at baggage claim with the rest of the city. He tried not to look to eager, but he wanted his arms full again. Her flight was supposed to be here by now, but the connecting flight from Utah took off late. Then there was some weather system that the pilot was flying around in the plains states. He got there to pick her up on time, but ended up waiting for an hour.

**

The wheels finally touched the ground and then anxiety of flying left and the excitement of being back filled the void. The first time she went home Danny flew out to help her through the trial. The second time she went home, he used his shield to get to the gate. She wondered what he had in store upon her arrival this time.

She didn't see him when she reached the end of the jetway. Before, Danny hung back and followed her so every fifth step, she stopped and looked around to see if she could spot him somewhere as she progressed down the hall to retrieve her bag. But again he was no where to be seen. She walked towards the bathroom thinking he'd show himself there, but no.

She would remember the sight of him standing past the security check point. She added it to the file of snap shots she had of him in her mind. He stood behind a cluster of red and white; red roses and white daisies. They were beautifully mixed together and she loved them. He had no idea that she was approaching. He was holding the flowers in one hand and messing with his phone with the other. The flowers were upright and ready to present to her when she showed, but he wasn't paying attention. It was typical Danny.

This time she hid behind a pillar as he looked up from his phone. Feeling devious and a little evil, she pulled out her phone and started typing. The moment she pushed the 'send' key, she peeked to watch him.

He startled a little when the phone beeped. The flowers fell and lost their ready stance. He turned and started to walk out of the airport. The message that she sent, 'Cowboy, missed my flight in Montana. Will call when I am about to take off from Utah,' had done the job.

The opportunity was hers and she followed. He didn't look back, he didn't reply to her text. She saw the truck in the lot as he was walking. Shortcuts were taken and she reached the truck before he did. The flowers hung low and so did his head as he reached it.

"So, you wanna give me a ride home or what?"

Shock. His system could not comprehend the mixture of signals it was getting. His phone told his mind and his heart that it was going to be hours until she was here, but his eyes and ears were changing that information.

She was concerned. Danny hadn't moved. "So about that ride or am I gonna have to take a cab?"

"What…how?"

"I spotted you and you didn't see me, so I thought I'd have a little fun." His face was examined closely. "You don't even look a little happy to see me."

It was true, he looked stunned. Not enough time passed for him to look happy, but the feeling was starting to take him over. "You had me thinking that I was gonna have the next seven or so hours to myself in our apartment. I didn't know what I was going to do with all that time or the food that I prepared." The distance between them disappeared slowly. "And how much of a grump I was going to be after staying up and waiting on your butt."

"Really, that's what you were thinking?" The flowers darted passed her head and landed in the bed of the truck and his hands came to rest on her shoulders. Her hands found his waist.

"Not really. I was wondering if I could get back to the lab and check on some results from tests I started yesterday." He told her with a smile.

"There's my crime fighter." She hugged him quickly and tightly. "Let's go home."

**

**

Near the end of June a large envelope came in the mail. Danny checked both who the packet was for and who it was from before he laid in on the desk for Lindsay to open when she got home. It confused him. The sender was from her past. He wondered what it would do to her future.

**

Danny's glasses were askew on his face and the blanket from the back of the couch was doing a poor job of covering him. The silent scene in front of Lindsay was too perfect. He must have fallen asleep while waiting up for her. It was so late when she got home and he was asleep on the couch in an awkward position. There were very few times where she could enjoy a time like this and it was taken full advantage of. Silently she sat don on the coffee table in front of the couch. The television cast shadows of light across the distinct features of his face. They were much softer when he was in a deep sleep. The years of stress and horrors from the job disappeared from his face and he turned into a little boy, it was the same boy she saw in little league pictures around his childhood home.

"Hey, my handsome prince." A hand went to his brow. "Come on, lets get you to bed, its late." Cloudy blue eyes appeared. "There you are, come on, bed time…unless you want to start out here on the couch."

"No." The words was husky and deep. It held a heavy accent of sleep. The muscle kinks of sleeping on the couch already had a hold of him and slowed the progress. "I tried to wait up for ya, but it didn't work."

"Ya, think?"

**

The bed was empty when the alarm went off the next morning. Danny had to jog back to the bedroom to shut it off. Sleep had left him a few moments before and he found Lindsay out of bed. A quick tour of the apartment indicated she was already gone. That's when the alarm went off. He went about him morning routine, wondering if she was called in about the case she was working. A quick text confirmed where she was.

A thought at the door as he left for the morning commute, reminded him of Lindsay's delivery from the day before. He crossed the apartment in a few long strides and stopped where he left the large envelope the day before. He'd just take it into her. He wanted to know what the sender had to say…but it was gone.

"Did you get your mail from the desk?" he sent her.

"Yes."

"Was going to bring it into you."

"No need." And then, "You on your way?"

"Yep." The door was locked and he started on his way to work.

**

"What are my options Stell?" Lindsay asked quickly as she read Danny's response. The paperwork from the envelope spread across the small table in her office.

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_Current thought? Hum...wonder what that was all about? Any guesses? Any suggestions? Maybe something I haven't thought of yet. Let me know. I am off to bed. Look forward to reading your reviews in the morning._


	63. Chapter 63

_Thank you. I am so excited that this story has pushed the review count over 600. Without you, it would not have happened. As a celebration, I would like to call out to those who lurk and read but don't review. Give me a shout out. Send me anything, where is everyone reading from, what keeps you reading, just tell me hi and that you like it. Delurk for just one chapter and give me a quick shout out._

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"Reinstatement of Position," "Termination of Position," "Extension of Status." The three blank forms say on top of the small table in Stella's office. The door was closed. Lindsay and Stella say side by side on the couch, backs to the lab. The rest of the thick contents were back in the envelope and put aside. Lindsay had to fill out one of these forms and send it back in to the school's central office.

"Stella, when I saw the envelope sitting on the desk at home, I was afraid that something else was going on with the case back in Bozeman. Once I read the return address and opened it, I wished it was something to do with the case back home. I just don't know what to do about this. It was always an option to go back, but I forgot that the time to make a choice was coming so soon."

Stella felt nothing but sympathy for the young woman sitting with her. She also knew that she could not push in any direction to help make this decision. It had to come from Lindsay. "What does Danny think?"

The other woman's head hung sheepishly. "I haven't told him yet. I found this after I got home. I couldn't sleep. I got up and came in early and ran into you in the hall."

"What do you want to do, Kiddo?"

"What are my options?"

"Well, I think they are laid out in front of you." The forms were ignored and Stella put all her focus on Lindsay. "No matter what, you'll always be a part of this family. You were part even before you came to work here. No matter what you decide there will be no hard feelings. We want what will make you happy."

"I'd be happiest doing both: teacher by night and lab analyst by night." Stella had an image of Super Lindsay in her head with cape and all.

There was a quiet laugh between them. "When are you going to be Lindsay Monroe the girlfriend?"

"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about that part." Another small quiet burst of laughter fell in the air.

Something out of the corner of Stella's eye caught her attention. "Well think quickly because Danny's here. Must be about time for the day to really begin."

Lindsay followed her friend's sight line and saw Danny's figure roaming the hall, looking in rooms. Stella's phone beeped. "I gotta dead body on Broadway. Let me know how things go."

**

Things didn't have a chance to go. Lindsay was soon called out to the same case Stella left for. She was busy working the scene when Flack came to fill her in on what witnesses saw.

"Victim's name is George Edison. He was 35 and owner of a small coffee shop around the corner. Regular customers say he closed up on time last night. When the employees showed for work, he wasn't there. They looked in the alley to see if the back door was open. That's when they found him and called 911." Flack realized that Lindsay was in no way paying attention. "I was called and had to get out of bed with my mermaid lover and dump her back in the Hudson before racing to get here. I think aliens did it, but your tests and evidence will have to back that up."

Lindsay missed every word. "Did the victim have any enemies?"

"Yeah, the tooth fairy said the coffee sucked."

That got her and her face scrunched up in confusion. "What? You're dating the tooth fairy?"

His investigation notebook was flipped shut. "What give Monroe? I've been givin' you bogus information the whole time and you pick up on me dating the tooth fairy?"

"Late night, early morning." Was her only response.

"Really?" He bounced up on his toes and gave her a knowing look.

"Grow up Flack. I was out late because of a case and up early because I couldn't sleep." Work continued and she avoided his eye contact. He was a detective, someone trained to read voice and facial expressions.

"Nope, not buyin' it. Try again."

"Just got a lot on my brain right now." The tone told Flack that it was all he was going to got out of her. The information was repeated again about the case and he moved on.

**

Leaving on time that day was a pleasant surprise for Lindsay. She took a hot shower, changed into her most comfortable shorts and NYPD t-shirt, then spread the paperwork out over the pool table. Three blank forms looked so small in the sea of green. She looked at them from all four side of the table hoping that a different perspective would help with the decision, but it didn't. When Danny arrived home, she was standing on the table looking down at the sheets.

"What in the world are you doin'?"

"Thinking."

"This is not what you look like when you are thinking. Where's the carpet of yellow notebook paper?"

"I'm trying something new."

"I see that. What are you deciding?" She was still looking down at the surface and had not looked up to see him. Keys still dangled from his fingers and his bag was still over his shoulder. The sight stopped everything he was doing.

"Whether to extend my personal leave from teaching for another year, to go back and teach or to terminate my status as an employee with the school."

"Nothin' big then?"

"No, not at all." She joked back at him.

Danny quickly changed and returned to find her still standing way above him. Two bottles of water were retrieved from the kitchen. "Alright, Linds, what are we talking about here?" He sat on one corner and swung his legs over the edge handing her a bottle of water.

"We're talking about me making a big decision and not feeling guilty about it."

He listened to the words that she wasn't saying. "Why would you feel guilty about going back to teaching?"

Fingers started fidgeting in front of her. "Mac hired me, I've only been there a year, I don't want to let anyone down, I love working in the lab."

"When do you have to make your decision by?"

"End of July?"

"So you don't have to decide today? What are you stressing about? It'll come to you, like a bolt of lightning, something will come to ya. Put this stuff away and let it sit."

**

It plagued her thoughts the next day. Then it started to fade away. Her case load got heavy. She worked a case where a body was found in a tree with no apparent cause of death. Sid was stumped. The only medical problem Sid could find was dehydration. No drugs, no wounds, no heart or organ defects. The people who know the victim had nothing helpful to add. The case closed though after a small piece of information came in. It would have them laughing down the road, but now it was so tragic.

A distant family member called in from the Midwest saying that the name had moved to New York City to avoid a childhood fear. He found others through the internet with the same fear and together they were working on their common fears. The family member thought that because of his fear he climbed the tree because it was the only way out, however, there was no way out of the tree and he died.

Mac could hardly believe the story. "The vic climbed a tree to get away from something he was afraid of. What stuck around long enough to cause this man to die?" To humor him, Lindsay gave a few moments for Mac to think but he got impatient. "Well…?"

"The one thing he moved to the city to avoid. We are a 'concrete jungle.' He moved here to get away from grass. Being the city that we are, he didn't think there was much here."

"And the grass around the base of the tree had him scared enough to keep him there?"

"I guess so."

**

Paperwork on the case took twice as long as it normally does. All the facts were double checked, just to make sure nothing obvious was missed. Then she did an internet search for the clinical term for the fear of grass, but there isn't one. There's a term for the fear of dancing, bridges, newness, being out of mobile phone range, x-rays, the number 13 and fish; but there is no term for a grass fear. The best one she came up with was grass-o-phobia and that just made her giggle. Danny walked in, but she smelled him before she saw him.

"I can tell you that you don't have aichmophobia."

"Okay…"

"Don't you want to know what that is?"

"Sure."

"The fear of sharp or pointed objects."

"Again with the 'okay…' Please tell me you are about done here. I'm ready to go home."

"Nope, I want to finish this. I should only be about another hour."

"I'm heading out then. Flack took me dumpster diving and I went in with too much gusto and I landed wrong on a dead guy."

"Nice."

He rolled his eyes at her. "I'll be at home."

"I'll let you know when I am on my way home." He turned on him heel and started to leave. "By the way, do you have any fears of phobias?"

"No…why?"

"Just checking. I don't want to find you dead up in some tree or something."

**

A few days later, it struck her like a bullet and it took her breath away. It was the sign that she was waiting for and it came from the strangest place. She ran from where she was all the way back to the apartment. She found the appropriate form that needed to be filled out and got to work.

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_Feedback me...I write faster that way._

_Preview: Lindsay makes a decision, there's a baby coming, marriage, and lots more. I am just about to start writing for season five and watch season six. Big things are coming. _


	64. Chapter 64

_There are few events that can knock me out of my mind set to write: family illness, heavy workload, and things of the like. However for the last week, I have been trying to wrap my mind around Adam and Stella. It wasn't that it was wrong, it was just handled funny and I really don't think that it's the last that we will hear about it, especially after Stella's hand rested on Adam's shoulder last night while he was at the computer. Anyway, I hope that my mind has cleared. (For this story at least, the whole Adam/Stella thing threw off another story that I have had in the works for months...since the beginning of the summer). _

_Anyway, here it is._

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Mid August came all too soon for Lindsay. In the weeks ahead the days would start to grow longer, the air would become crisper, and the leaves would change. She was not looking forward to these events because it meant that time was passing her by. She wanted time to stop and it made her question the decision she made about her future.

"_Hello?"_

"_Hi mom."_

"_Lindsay? Everything okay?"_

"_Yeah, just calling to say hey."_

"_You and Danny have another fight?"_

"_No, not that I know of." She was curious about her mother's question._

"_Lindsay why are you calling?" Worry and concern filled her words._

"_Mom, I just had a few minutes so I decided to call."_

"_It's Tuesday afternoon, you usually call on Sunday. When you break your pattern I assume that something is wrong, so spill it."_

_Lindsay let out a huge sigh and closed her eyes. Her mother knew how to read her way too well. "I am leaving the crime lab and going back to teaching."_

"_Did something happen at work? Is everything okay?"_

_Lindsay could almost hear the frantic thoughts as they formed in her head. "Mom…mom, yes everything is okay. Everyone is okay. My leave that I took last August is over. I decided to go back and teach rather than extend my leave."_

"_What on earth made you decide that?" Lindsay was so glad that she could not see her mother right now. From the tone of her voice, Lindsay's mother was questioning the decision that her daughter made. Lindsay started the story about what happened and how the answer just hit her while she was out shopping one day…_

That was two weeks ago. Danny stood next to her while all their friends milled around their apartment. The gathering was a 'career change' dinner for Lindsay and everyone was there. He tightened his arm around her when he noticed that she was off in la-la land. An appreciated look was passed between the two and she snuggled further into his side.

_The bell above the door chimed when Danny walked in. Lindsay was across the room talking to one of the waitresses. He made his way over to them and listened to the end of their conversation. The waitress took their drinks and departed. Danny had not yet sat down. Curiously he was watching as Lindsay adjusted the utensils on the table over and over; straightening the spoon with the knife and the napkin with the fork. He could not understand until he realized that she was nervous. _

"_You've made a decision haven't you?" He slid in across from her in the booth._

"_Yeah…yeah I have." She was still messing with the table and moving things around._

"_Well?"_

"_I'm going teach." In the heartbeat it took for the last word to come out of her mouth she looked up at his face to watch his eyes. He could say and sound any way that he wanted. Years of practice in the interrogation room have fine tuned his skills of getting suspects to trust what he was saying. But she knew his eyes. She had seen joy and pain, loss and hope, lust and love. Now she watched for any flicker in his eyes as he processed what she said. She would know right away if he said something different from what he felt._

"_Fantastic. How did you figure it out?"_

"_I was at the drug store the other day and I saw this display for 'back to school' and got all giddy. I could picture all the kids back in their desks learning. I could see the ideas being shared and the students excited about what was filling their heads. I knew then that I wanted to go back"_

" _When do you start?" His eyes stayed clear, blue, and truthful. There was not a waiver in what he said with his words or his look. She knew that he supported her._

She hugged him close and then kissed his cheek. With a confused look on his face, she wiggled out of his grasp and mixed in with the rest of the group to talk.

Mac was talking to Stella over in a corner. Lindsay wanted to thank them for coming, as if that would be enough of a 'thank you' for all that each of them had done since she met them. The sisterhood she built with Stella was something she would miss sharing on a day-to-day basis. Stella was a rock. From day one she was someone that she could lean on.

Mac...Mac was…Mac. He didn't fit into any category. He was stern and expected a strict work ethic and yet had a softer and surprising side.

_She stood in front of Mac's closed glass office door. He was on the phone and hadn't noticed her standing there yet. Danny came off the elevator to start his night shift and found her there._

"_You haven't talked to him yet?"_

"_No, I have followed him to the men's room, to the interrogation room. He's been out at scenes, in meetings, on the phone, out to lunch. I have planted myself here just to wait. I have to get this done today." What she told Danny was the truth, she tried all day to nail him down and talk to him, but she waited until she knew that he was about to be doing something else or going out. She didn't know if she was ready to talk with him. She wasn't afraid of Mac, far from it. She was afraid of letting him down. Mac gave her the job, gave her the opportunity, gave her back some of the confidence that she lost when she left Montana. Now she had to tell him that she didn't want that opportunity anymore._

_Mac hung up and noticed the two of them standing there. Danny still had his back and helmet. The locker room was his original destination, but he was not going to miss this for the world. Lindsay was practicing the speech she would deliver to Mac in front of the mirror for days. He caught her a few times. He wanted to see the actual event. _

_Mac gave them his signature wave, giving them the okay to enter. "What can I do for you two?"_

_Lindsay didn't realize that Danny followed her in but he stood behind waiting. Air filled her lungs and it would have to be the shot of confidence that she needed to get through the next few minutes. "Mac, I'm leaving the lab and going back to the school system." Then she fell silent. The rest of the speech about giving notice and how appreciative she was for the job was forgotten and lost. Danny's jaw dropped. He could not believe that she said one sentence and then was just standing there._

_Mac scratched his head and had to run a hand over his mouth to hide the smile and chuckle that was coming up. To further cover, he busied himself by rummaging around in a drawer at his desk. A file was produced and handed over to Lindsay. _

"_I know." His one sentence was a little more shocking to Danny than Lindsay's performance. The manila folder was opened and all of Lindsay's exit paper work was inside. "Stella came to me the same day you went to her. We pulled those to have them ready." She looked again and saw that they were all filled out. The only blanks were where she had to list a last day and where she had to sign. "Stella got bored one slow night and started filling everything out. She had a feeling that you would be leaving us."_

_It was not at all what she was expecting. She was expecting the 'are you sure' conversation, not much more than that, but she was at least expecting that much. The file closed and she tapped it against the palm of her hand. She willed away unshed tears and hoped to make it out of the office without any of them spilling over. "Thank you."_

_Danny and Mac were left alone to stare at each other._

"_I can't believe that she finally told you. She's said she's been trying all day."_

"_I know. It's been kind of humorous watching her dance around all day."_

"_You had that paper work ready all this time. What if she never mentioned it?"_

"_I was hoping she wouldn't, but I knew she would. I was going to give her until the end of next week and if she hadn't talked to me about it, the papers would have been trashed and the thought forgotten."_

Lindsay moved closer to Mac and Stella. She was surprised to hear that they were talking about wine and not about work. They each were holding a glass and talking animatedly. Lindsay stood close and listened. The passion they used in their conversation was the same passion they used when talking about cases, suspects, and leads. She moved away without interrupting them and kept moving through the apartment.

**

It was late. Almost everyone had gone home. Danny had Angell over at the pool table and was trying to keep his head above water, but Angell was wiping the floor with him. Flack and Lindsay sat on the couch and watched the game over the back. Lindsay was watching the game, Flack was watching Angell.

"When are you going to do something about that playground crush you have?"

He laughed to himself. "You barking up that tree too? Messer's been giving me a hard time for a few days about it."

"He saw something, I saw something, you obviously see something." Lindsay's eyes widened at the two who were playing behind them.

"She's not anything like anyone else I have dated. She challenges me every step and doesn't give me any slack. Given the chance, I'm sure she would kick my ass if it was needed. But we work together, I have to make sure that there's something there or it's going to get complicated. If I start this marathon, it's going to slow and steady, but it will be worth it."

"I'll be waiting to congratulate the winners. I'm just sorry I won't be there along the way to cheer you on."

"Not for the day by day, but I'm sure Danny with come home with all the wrong information to share. Behind them Danny groaned and then handed a few small bills over to the victor. Without looking away from Lindsay, Flack called out, "Hey Jess, you still want that ride home?" And then he raised his brow a few times suggestively. Lindsay smiled and nodded a few times.

"Yeah, sure. I can't do any more damage here." And after a few embraces and promises to call (between the girls) Flack guided Angell out of the apartment with a hand on the small of her back. It didn't go unnoticed by either Danny or Lindsay.

**

The lights were out; the apartment was quiet for the first time in hours. Cuddled up together under the sheet and blanket in bed Danny wrapped around Lindsay and he started to fall asleep.

"Well its official, you are now employed again by New York City Schools. How does it feel?"

"Exhausting."

"Well get some sleep. Tomorrow starts your only week of summer vacation before meetings begin."

"Only one week?"

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Did I handle it well? What will she do over her week back. And I haven't covered Hostage and Veritas yet or Danny and Flack in the Tyvec suit or the life sized Dolls. I just love what I have coming up.

Review-It!!


	65. Chapter 65

_I have a few loves in my life. I love my new netbook - it makes writing easier and happen more often. I love the Boy Scouts. My husband and two oldest children are out camping this weekend with the scouts and I can write. (Go me!!!) I love my job. It has given me time to write and get ideas down when the come rather than waiting._

_Now, go read!_

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How was she supposed to fit 104 days of summer vacation into nine days before school came along to end it? Of those nine days, Danny was off from work for four of them. Normally summer was filled with lazy days and late nights. She wanted to go shopping and hang out in the park under the blue sky. She wanted to meet friends for lunch and sleep late. How was she supposed to do all that in nine days? It was only day one and her plans were already blown.

The alarm hadn't been turned off after everyone had left the night before and when the annoying buzz happened, Danny jumped out of bed and hit the shower. He didn't turn the alarm off and seven minutes later it went off again. There was no chance of her going back to sleep. She just lay there tangled in the sheets staring up at the ceiling. Danny was singing in the shower, off key. She held a pillow over her head hoping to muffle the sound. It worked for a minute, but then the singing got clearer and louder. Peeking from under her cover, she saw Danny come back into their room to get dressed and she groaned.

"What are you doing up so early? You woke me up and I'm on vacation."

"We have plans that need an early start."

Plans…early start…those words she understood, but 'we?' "uh, no _**WE **_don't have plans. You might have something planned, but I know nothing about me joining you."

The bed dipped near her and the pillow was removed. The scent of a clean Danny invaded her nose. Instinctively her lungs filled with air and she smiled.

"Good morning beautiful. I am kidnapping you today and tomorrow. I have some outings planned."

"And if I go kicking and screaming?"

"At least you'll be going. The kicking and screaming just makes it more interesting. Come one get up. We leave in 20."

In mild protest, another groan was sounded, the bed sheets thrown off and the pillow made contact with Danny's head.

**

"Can you just move the couch over by the front door so I can fall onto it and pass out?" Lindsay asked Danny during the taxi ride home. A gorilla sat between them on their way home from a day at Coney Island. Their tummies were stuffed with hot dogs, cotton candy, popcorn and other goodies that had absolutely no nutritional value. Their memories were filled with the sights and sounds, the thrills and laughter from their day.

The gorilla separating them was the newest addition to the family. He would join the six foot snake that was brought home from Montana a while back. This biggest difference between the snake and the gorilla was that Lindsay won the gorilla. He was the Nilla Gorilla and Lindsay had the biggest grin plastered to her face ever since winning it.

"If I make it to the couch, I'm falling asleep on it, not moving it." Every ounce, drop…every morsel and inch of energy that they started the day with was spread over Coney Island and it ran out hours ago. They just kept pushing themselves because of the rarity of the day.

Drained and completely wiped, Danny splurged and suggested they take a cab home.

"Can we sleep in tomorrow or do we have to get up early again?"

He could tell that she was zapped. He could tell her that they were blasting off to the moon to go jellyfish hunting on a unicycle and she would have going along with it. He stayed away from the details and gave the only answer he could.

"We can sleep in tomorrow and our plans don't include moving around a lot."

"Thank you." It was for a lot more than just letting her sleep-in in the morning, but the explanation would have to wait for another time.

**

A stretch of his body in the morning started the day. He liked sleeping in late as much as the next guy, yesterday it had to be sacrificed to give his girl a good day. That day they could sleep in, have a leisurely breakfast, and hopefully take a shower…together. Yesterday had been exhausting, running around like teenagers in love on the boardwalk and goofing off. Today would be different. It would still be a late night, hopefully much later than the night before, but they would not be using as much energy until they got home.

He was able to lie in bed and look at the soft features in her face and think about how lucky he was. He could not pass up moments like this, where he could just look at her and breath. There were no deadlines, nothing to interrupt him, nothing to stop him from staring. He wondered which of her features was his favorite. His eyes wandered around, darting from her eyes, to her lips, to her brow and nose. Fingers itched to trace her face.

If anyone ever found out that he looked at her features and wondered what they would look like mixed in with his on a little face he would be mortified. If Lindsay knew that he was thinking about this, would she think him silly? Was that really where this relationship was going?

"What are thinking about so hard in there?" Fingers went to his brow as she greeted the morning with open eyes.

"Whether or not I missed anything in the cases I have open right now." Quick thinking.

"Liar, but I will let it slide since you let me sleep late." She adjusted to sit up a bit and look at him. "What do you have in store for me today?"

"Well, I have another day out in the sunshine."

"No, more walking please. My feet cannot take any more."

"How about your ass?" He would have laughed out loud at her if he knew that she would not be mad at him, but the face she made when he asked about her rear, was priceless.

"Huh?"

"I know you feet are tired, but can you sit for extended periods of time?"

"That I can do with no problem."

"Good, we are going to go and sit outside for a long period of time and then come home."

"What are we doing, Danny?" She could think of a few things that fit that description.

"I have tickets to the double-header today."

"Wow, sitting outside for long periods of time. A Yankees game was not one of the options that I thought about. There's the park, the beach, the roof…"

He got really close to her and a sneaky look clouded his baby blues. "I hear there might even be fireworks at the end." He whispered.

"…of the game or the night?" She equally whispered.

"Maybe both."

**

He spent longer getting ready than she did. He came out of the bathroom looking spiffy and ready for a day out. He took longer than usual on his appearance and it showed.

She let him hold her close on the train, taking a position specifically where he would have to stand with his arms around her to get to the hand rail.

He didn't notice when the leggy blond boarded the train and sat down near where they were standing.

She smiled at him a lot.

He gave her reason to.

She invaded his personal space every chance she could.

He touched her every chance he could.

She played with her hair and pulled at her lip as if she was nervous.

He looked down at her and stared when he thought she was not looking.

And then they reached their stop.

**

The games were awesome. She had no idea what the score was or who was at bat. The man next to her had all her attention. He filled her head with stories about New York and its history. It started with a random fact about the ball field and went from there.

"Where do you know all this from?"

"You go on cases, you pick stuff up."

"And then you wait for a time like to use it to impress the girl your with."

Surprised. "You're impressed?"

"It's kinda sexy." Slyly.

"Really?" Hands came together and rubbed back and forth. "Fantastic."

**

Many people didn't last through all eighteen innings. Many of the players didn't either. They looked dog tired when the sun went down and the lights came on. They didn't look any better under the lights. Danny did. Each strike was a strike closer to them going home. Each out added up. Innings ticked by and it became a countdown.

The seventh inning stretch became a competition. She reached up and showed skin. He turned away from her and bent at the waist. Her shoulders went back and chest protruded out. A foot went up on the back of the chair and muscles in his legs tensed. The foolishness of the whole show between them got them laughing.

Excitement built from then until the end of the game. Danny mentioned fireworks when they woke up and the idea of them was warming her up. The last out happened and she cheered, full out of her seat cheered, jumping up and down. Then had that embarrassing moment where everyone looked at her.

"A little _excited _there Montana?"

"You did say something about fireworks, how do you think I feel?"

"I think you're about to hit one out of the park."

"That was cheesy."

"I'd love to hit a home run with you." Brows jumped, voice deeped.

"Oh, this is the way it's going to be."

"I want to run the bases with you, making sure to spend lots of time visiting each one."

"Okay, that sounded nothing like a pick up line at the end."

"It wasn't"

**

It was innocent flirting when they were on the train earlier. It was nowhere close to innocent on the way home. He still held her, but his hands were full of the skin under the bottom of her shirt. It only was a response to her hands being buried deep in his back pockets and playing.

The chaste pecked on the cheek earlier were something from the movies and not the kind you see at the local Cineplex. They knew just how far they could go in public and they were toeing that line all the way home. The fireworks at the game were foreplay, the fireworks at home that night burned bright, hot and strong for hours.

**

Danny snuck out and left his naked girlfriend in bed. She woke mid morning and enjoyed the muscle strains she had. Lumbering to the bathroom, the reflection in the mirror smiled at her. The smile was gone when she looked in the medicine cabinet.

She thought it odd that more doses of her daily medicine were there than should be. In the craziness of the last few days, she must have missed a few. Following the recommendation from the instructions, she'd double up until she was back on track. A worrisome thought played in her mind upon feeling the aches and pains from last night. She shrugged it off and went on.

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This chapter just came out of no where. I blame the character Danny Messer. Feedback please. makes me write faster.


	66. Chapter 66

_I love all of you. Thank you for still hanging in there with me. I don't know what is going on with my writing. I have chapters written out for this story. I have 6 chapters written out for another story that I am writing and needing to start publishing, I have the first chapter written out to a third story that has been swimming around for a while. I thought I would get a lot of writing done during summer, but it seems like the writing fever is strongest during the school year._

_Please read. Please review. I love hearing from you and seeing the numbers go up. I am still amazed at the number of people who are reading. Please keep it up._

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It was cold. It was gray. An air of emptiness hung around it. I was bare and dull. It just sat there like a puppy no one wanted. It was hard not to see it just sitting there. It was the proverbial elephant in the room. Everyone looked at it when they passed the office. It caught Danny's eye while he worked at the computer. The paperwork on his desk didn't keep his attention and he looked over at it every once in a while. The drawers of the cold thing held no more evidence now that she was gone. The desktop didn't hold any of the cheerful knickknacks that used to annoy him. Her laughter no longer was heard echoing off the glass walls. The song was right..."There ain't no sunshine when you're gone." He wanted her desk out of the office, at least until someone was hired to replace her and that thought was even worse.

There was one thing she left behind: her desk calendar. She stated that she would have to get a school year desk calendar that went from August to July and the one left behind wouldn't be needed. It wouldn't be so bad; he should just throw it away. Who would want a calendar someone else had written on? Someone who drew little hearts over the letter I's and curly cues at the end of words. Who would want a calendar where dates were crossed out when the passed or drew little pictures in the dates of holidays? Danny flipped through the large sheets. A pumpkin marked Halloween, a turkey for Thanksgiving, and a tree was drawn on the line between December 24th and 25th. An asterix was in the corner of December 12th. He couldn't think of anything that made the date stand out. Notes were made out in the margins about leads. Doodles were in the margins from when she was put on hold.

Taking the calendar from the otherwise empty desktop, he found an answer for his questions. He was probably the only person in the world who would want a mostly used calendar. He threw his own in the trash and replaced it with hers. Now maybe he could get something done.

**

"Ms. Monroe, this is Bob Case from the New York City Public Schools Central Offices. I need you to meet with Mr. Crain at his school to talk about an open position that he has. Please call him as soon as you can." The rest of the message included all the contact information and she made the phone call back to Mr. Crain.

**

"Danny, is Lindsay waiting on you?"

"Huh?" The microscope was forgotten at the mention of his girlfriend's name. Hawkes and his cup of coffee were at the lab door.

"I just saw Lindsay around the corner at the coffee shop sitting at a table surrounded by a mass of paper."

"What color was the paper?"

"Did you really just ask me that?" His stance changed.

"Yes. Do you remember the color of paper that she had?" The direct question garnered all his focus.

"It was yellow. Does that mean something?"

"Yeah. It means I forgot that I was meeting her. Take over here, I'll be right back." Yellow paper could be a bad thing, could be a good thing, but it was a thing that he needed to find out about.

**

The meeting with the principal went great. At first she was confused about why she had to meet with him. She just assumed that her old position would be there, but it made sense that someone else would be hired to fill the open job after she left. It was just something that never crossed her mind.

Mr. Crain showed up in jeans and a t-shirt and they took a tour of the school while they talked about the position he was offering her. The tour ended and they took a seat on the front steps to talk. He laid out what he wanted her to teach, rather what his vision was for her in his school. The idea intrigued her and she set off right away on writing down all the ideas that she had. Her phone held down one pile, the sugar bowl held down another. Ideas flew in her brain and they couldn't get out onto paper fast enough.

She asked what field of science what he wanted her to concentrate on. He told her that he wanted to her to teach vocational science and math; something to show the students how and where the subjects would be used in the job market. The class would be offered to all sophomores. The school councilors would help choose those students who would benefit the most from the class if the numbers were too large. A few would then continue on the next year for a more in-depth study. Then in their senior year, even fewer would continue on with her in an independent student program where the student would shadow people who work some of the jobs they had discussed and then keep a journal of their experiences. He was hoping to give the students more appreciation for the working people of New York and open up a new avenue for those students needing help narrowing down job ideas for the future.

She made lists of contacts from a few years back that she had. She made lists of jobs in New York that she could tap into for help and mentors. She made lists of what to teach during what parts of the school year. Excited words flowed out of her pen as one idea led to another. It became apparent that she would need the full two years to do all the ideas that had come to her.

"Montana, were we supposed to have lunch today?" She looked like a kid in a candy store surrounded by all her papers.

"No, I just finished up with Mr. Crain and I needed a place to sit down and think. This was the closest place that I could think of."

"Hawkes saw you here a little while back and told me you were here. From the looks of things, you're deciding on whether to take the job or not." It was a probing question. He didn't know how to address the blizzard of yellow papers.

"No, I took the job, this is me planning for my classes."

"I have a lot more appreciation for my teachers now." He looked at the frantic pace of her writing and could see the teacher's brain working. He could not help her in anyway and he could tell that she was not anywhere close to a stopping point. He kissed her cheek while she was still working and slowly backed away. "Love you and I'll see you at home. I'll call when I'm on my way."

"You always do."

**

"Is the world coming to an end?"

Danny entered the lab and spotted Hawkes still at the microscope that he was working at before he left. "Don't think so."

"You just took off out of here like it just might be."

"When yellow paper is used by one Miss Lindsay Monroe, it means that she is thinking about something…seriously. She had an interview with a principal about her new placement and I thought the yellow paper meant that she was having to think about taking the job or not."

"But it didn't."

"No, the volumes that she was writing were more about planning her school year and getting the ideas down on paper before they left her head. Great work was happening, I just left her there to think and work. Wouldn't surprise me if she was still sitting there when I got off in a few hours."

"As long as everything is okay"

"Yeah, everything is good."

**

He found the perfect apple at the market. It was shiny and the right shade of red. It sat evenly on the counter. There were no soft spots or bruises. There was even one small leaf left on the stem.

He made the perfect sandwich. The slices of ham were layer the way she like them with the cheese and lettuce. He added just enough mustard to taste it and enough mayo to make her happy. With the sharpest knife in the drawer he cut it carefully in half before zipping it up in a bag.

His mom sent homemade chocolate chip cookies out the door with them on Sunday. Two of the best baked, heaviest in chips, and biggest were chosen and he put them into a ziplock bag.

All the items went into a brown paper bag with a can of her favorite drink. On a white napkin he scrawled a love note to her and stuffed it into the side of her lunch bag. The top was folded down a few times to make the easy carry handle.

She scrambled out of the bedroom ready to run out the door already feeling late. Her school bag was hanging off of one shoulder. A cup of coffee was thrust into one hand and her lunch into the other. She hesitated and looked at the brown paper bag.

"I didn't want you goin' hungry. Now go and knock 'em dead." A kiss found its way to his cheek and she was out the door. Shaking his head he finally headed for bed. His shift ended an hour ago, but he was not about to fall asleep as soon as he got home and miss seeing her off for the first day of school. "They grow up so fast, " he laughed to no one.

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_Feed Me!! Review please. Makes me write faster._


	67. Chapter 67

My oneshot, The Park, was a surprise. Thank you for the great feedback. Here's the next chapter and dont be surprised if the next one shows up in just a few days.

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Danny Messer closed his locker door and checked himself one more time for all the necessary items that he needed before leaving the locker room to start his shift. His phone was ready. Lindsay would call, he had no doubt. She would fill him on in what happened during her first day of school. He was just waiting for the call.

He pushed the door open to start the early evening shift and froze two steps out the door. He heard his name being called and it wasn't pleasant to the ear. It took a few to figure out that it was Lindsay who was calling him and she sounded frantic. He wanted to go and hide in the corner until he thought about what it was that he'd done wrong. The chance to hide wouldn't come, she spotted him.

"Danny!!" She rushed him and clutched at the front of his shirt holding him nose to nose with her. She was red in the face and out of breath.

"Did you run here? School got out only twenty minutes ago."

"Aww, you know my schedule. That's sweet." And that soft voice was gone to be replaced with the frantic one again. "Danny, I saw them, they were everywhere. I saw them all day long." The grip on his shirt got tighter and tighter. He couldn't tell if seeing them was a good thing or a bad thing and he had no clue who "they" were. She was drawing the attention of those around her with her volume. The eyes of the techs in the labs were looking right at them.

"Let's talk about this in here." He walked backwards and into the locker room. Large hands covered her small wrists to pull her along with him, not that her grip was going to loosen anytime soon. "Okay, what's going on?" he cooed, trying to calm her down.

"Danny, they were in my classes, in the hall, at lunch…they were everywhere."

"Who are they?"

"My students."

"That makes sense you're a teacher." The laugh in his voice had to stay hidden.

"No smart ass. My students that I had the first year, they're in my school, I see them everywhere."

"And is this a good thing?" He was still wary about her tone.

"Yes, it's a good thing; it's a great thing. They already know me and know how I run my classes. They have the other students all excited about being in my class. It made my day to see them." The grip loosened, voice soften. "I had to tell you." All of a sudden she felt foolish for the big deal she made about it. She had tunnel-vision and had to get to Danny to tell him. Releasing the light grip she still had on the front of his shirt, she smoothed the hand shaped scrunched wrinkles in the fabric. She could feel the tightness of the muscle mass underneath and kept smoothing. "I guess I should go and let you get back to work. I need to get home." The fabric on the sleeves now needed some attention and she worked the wrinkles out there while feeling the definition. "Yeah, I should go." Hands were squeezing his arm rather than working on his shirt.

"You sure you don't want to stay?" She was off in a fog and he couldn't help but take advantage of it and give her a hard time.

"I'd love to stay, but I need to go." A long heated kiss, that was initiated by her was curling his toes and messing up his hair. Fingers scratched at his scalp and held his face to hers.

He was sad to see her go, but her moods were all over the place and he couldn't explain it and he was afraid of what five more minutes might have done to her.

**

Friday evening Danny and Lindsay were able to enjoy a meal together for the first time all week. Their opposing schedules had them passing in the hall each morning. They met at their diner, which had become home away from home. Lindsay could spread out and spend as much time there working while having dinner and she wasn't in the empty apartment for as long. Danny liked their breakfast and ate before going home and crawling into the bed that Lindsay left empty.

Danny simply asked how her first week went and an hour later she was still talking.

Their drink order showed up in the middle of an explanation about her class schedule and the school layout. A nod of thanks was passes between Danny and the waitress because he was not about to interrupt Lindsay when she was talking. Quietly the same waitress asked if they were having the usual and again a nod from Danny was the only answer.

She was starting to talk about the wonderful teachers who had rooms around her and her students when the food arrived. As he ate, she listed off the companies and individuals she contacted in the city to partner up with her class; everyone from the sanitation department to the high rise window washers and everyone in-between. Someone from the community would be coming in once a week to talk to the students and field trips would take place every other week or so.

Magic must have happened because somehow her food disappeared while she was talking. The fries and burger were gone and her stories never stopped.

"And that was all just Tuesday." She said before starting on everything that happened the rest of the week. It was going to be a long night. He really wished that Mac would call him in on something, anything…

**

The first of October, her students were deeply involved with a unit test. Lindsay sat at her desk enjoying that fine feeling of exhaustion that comes with a job well done. The students understood what she was talking about, the principles were put into practice and it was clicking in their brains. The silent hush in the room was broken by an incoming text to her phone. She jumped; the students jumped and looked sternly at her. "Sorry," she mouthed while fumbling with her phone. 'Danny better be dying,' she thought.

A week before Danny had sent her a text that merely stated "If you're watching the news, don't worry, it's not as bad as it sounds."

She wasn't watching the news, she was teaching a lesson about weight and counter weight; balance and load. They were going to the Freedom Tower site to see the cranes and talk to the crane operator in three days and she had to give the students a primmer about the job, and now instead of thinking about that, she was lost as to what he was talking about and what was not as bad as it seemed. Was he hurt, did something go wrong at a scene? What was the message all about?

After work she found out that Mac had traded himself for a hostage in a bank robbery, processed a dead body in a vault, sent secret evidence to the people on the outside, solved the crime (or so he thought), and then disappeared with the bank robber.

She ran straight to the lab to sit and wait it out. Mac was found. The story was crazy complicated and she couldn't believe it once the day was over. She pulled Danny aside and threatened that if he ever sent a message to her like that again with no following details or explanation, she would kill him and have his friends help hide the body.

No other texts had come into her during school hours from him.

Taking a good look at her phone she was delighted to see a message from Stella. "Sent you an e-mail."

It was the last class of the day, the students were still taking a test so she logged into her personal e-mail account. E-mails from Stella were not an odd thing, something common. What wasn't common was an announcement when they came in. It must have been something good.

The attachments embedded in the message took a few minutes to load, the attachments were huge and when she scrolled down through the message a hand flew up over her mouth. She was looking at photos taken at a crime scene, or various locations of the same incident. It wasn't bloody or gory or anything; they weren't that kind of crime scene photos. These were the loud belly laugh kind of photos and she had to cover her mouth to hold it in. She had to look hard, but the eyes gave them away.

The series of five or so photos were of Danny and Flack in white biohazard suits and face shields. They looked ridiculous and uncomfortable and dorky. With each new image looked at, it became harder and harder to hold the laugh in. All the usual characteristics that were there to identify a person, hair, clothes, personality, were covered up in white plastic and only the circle of their faces were showing. The laugh wanted out so much. Photo after photo, the screen scrolled by. When the last image filled the screen, the laughter turned into something else. If a picture says a thousand words, her brain melted and she only thought of a few: hot, want, need, desire.

Stella must have been watching Danny like a hawk for some reason. She caught a picture of him that she wanted to print out and carry around for the rest of her life. The white suit was gone. He was in his undershirt and good jeans, gone was the button up that he slid on earlier that morning. He was sitting on a curb, knees bent; arms resting straight out in front of him on his knees. His head was cocked to the side like he was talking to someone sitting beside him, a smirk on his lips. The sun cast the perfect light to highlight the detail and form of his arms and shoulders. The sun filtered through his hair perfectly, almost giving him a halo. A half drunk bottle of water loosely dangled from his hand. The image reminded her of the commercial where the construction worker takes a break to have a Diet Coke and all the women in the office buildings around him come and watch. Police cars were in the background. The city was all around him. It was the perfect picture of Danny Messer; it encompassed everything about him and she wanted to frame it on the wall.

The final bell of the day rang and Lindsay almost skipped home with major plans for the night formulating in her brain. She hoped Danny was up to it.

**

"Messer."

"Yeah, Flack what's up?"

"We're gonna go and watch the Rangers game with Sid in the hospital later. You in?"

"I was just on my way home. Let me drop this stuff off there and I'll meet you."

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_Ta Da!!! Hope you enjoyed. _


	68. Chapter 68

_I told you the next chapter was coming quick. It was a continuation of the previous and made the chapter way too long. Here ya go!!_

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There was a dead body at his feet…drag marks and a pool of blood on the floor…shell casings littered all over the place…numerous bullet holes perforated both the body and the walls…a very beautiful homicide police detective that he loved to stare at hunched over the body.

But he was not looking at any of these things. Nope, Don Flack was staring at his best friend. Danny limped into the small room. He dropped his case to the floor instead of bending over like usual. Every movement, no matter how slight, seemed to cause him pain. No effort was made to hunch down to examine the body. He just stood and looked around. Flack wanted to know why Danny didn't make it to the hospital the night before to watch the Rangers game, but he wanted to know why he looked like he was on the losing end of a bear fight even more.

"I hope you arrested the guy who put you that way and I'd hate to see what you did to him." Flack finally spoke up.

"Nope, no arrest." Danny looked down at his kit way down on the floor in disgust.

"You let the guy go?"

"Girl, it was a girl."

"A woman did this to you?"

"Yep."

"What woman could do this to you?"

"Lindsay."

"Monroe did this to you?" He was in shock. "What did you do wrong?" A Danny Messer Angelic smile appeared. "What did you do right?" Flack's voice asked with enough suggestion to get the point across to the Statue of Liberty.

"I have no idea, but she has never been like that."

"Like what?" Stella arrived.

"Lindsay attacked Danny in a good way apparently." Angell explained while still trying to work.

"What brought this on?" His boss directed his way.

"Ya know, she did mention something about pictures in an e-mail."

Stella laughed. "I sent her photos of you two in the classy biohazard suits from yesterday." She didn't need to share that she sent another picture.

"He Mess…if this is how you are after pictures, imagine what it might be like if you took one of those bad boys home." A look from the whole room left him puzzled. "What?"

"Stella, forward those pictures to me, I need a good laugh. I'm sorry I missed it." Angell told her.

Danny got no sympathy for his soreness and went straight to work…painfully.

**

Danny fell onto the couch in the break room. The aspirin he took for pain was doing a minimal job and his hair hurt. He hurt bad, but getting that way was oh, so good.

He had every intention to go to the hospital the night before to watch the game, but Lindsay attacked him at the door with his bag over his shoulder and shoes still on. She turned his world upside down and every other way too. Her veracity was surprising and just thinking about it make his insides coil. There was nothing sweet about the night before. She was hungry and he made up every course on the menu.

"Danny," came a voice from the door.

"Yeah, Hawkes what's up?"

"Flack told me to give this to you." A plastic bag was handed over. Inside was one of the bio-hazard suit.

"Yeah, thanks. Tell Flack I owe him one." Sarcasm wrapped around each word.

**

"Mac's coming in with a body on a plane. Have to go in. Sorry about messing up our plans today. D-"

Lindsay was actually relieved. She wasn't feeling quite right. She chalked it up to not getting enough rest, maybe a little stress, and allergies. A day of rest was what she needed. Back in bed sleep came quickly.

**

Two Saturdays later, Lindsay sat at an outdoor table in front of a coffee shop she didn't know existed. Danny thought it might be a nice place to meet for a mid afternoon snack, or at least that is what he told her. He was late and the cinnamon roll was calling her name. Deciding not to wait for him to eat, she ordered one. The day was cool and the crisp air felt food in her lungs. She answered her phone.

"Hey babe, I got caught up here at the lab, but Flack is out there in the area talking to a possible lead. If you see him, give him a hard time, I owe him one."

"Can do, but I feel like I've been set up?"

"Just watch for Flack. I'm sure something will come up."

So she sat. She enjoyed the gooey warm sinfully sweet treat in front of her. People passed, cars passed, a lot of time passed. She had things to do at home and needed to get going. Five more minutes was all she could spare.

"Lindsay, Danny said you might be down here." Flack sounded cheerful. "He was supposed to come with me, but he got hung up. I got to go talk to a guy, you wanna wait and I'll come down and have a cup of coffee with you. You have a few minutes to spare?"

"I've waited on him for this long; I guess I can wait on you too."

"Great, I'll try and make this quick." Lindsay watched as he bounded up the street and through the apartment building's front door. She flagged down the waitress and ordered another cinnamon roll, the first one tasted so good.

She wondered what topic she should give him a hard time about. His tie wasn't that hideous. He had some rather obnoxious ties and everyone always gave him a hard time about where he got them. But there was nothing to kid him about the one that he had on.

She could go after him about the relationship dance he was doing around Jessica. She found him attractive, he found her attractive, and they flirted and gazed about as much as Danny and Lindsay did at the beginning. But she didn't think that things had gone much further. They would be perfect for each other. He was a gentleman and charmed her with little things while not stepping her strength as a woman and detective. She mused on the topic until she heard his voice thank someone. She looked towards the voice and reached for her phone. He pushed a rather unusual cargo in front of him on a hand truck. She navigated to the camera function and snapped off a few shots before he turned down the sidewalk and towards her. She picked up the drink menu on the table and pretended to read it.

'Give him a hard time' Danny had told her. No problem there. He must have had some sort of idea about what Flack would find when he went to talk to their lead. It was a set up. She thought she'd make the trip worth it, not that the pastries would have here there almost every day that she could get back. His eyes looked everywhere except for where Lindsay sat. She wondered if pushing the life-sized doll in a zippered plastic see thru bag, down the street was too much for him. The right moment would make the right response perfect. Wait until he was just…about…to…pass...and…

"A doll?!!" The menu in front of her was slammed down on the table. "I mean I could understand if you dumped me for a real woman but a piece of plastic?" She was out of her seat and walking behind him. All eyes were on them and he was praying for the Heavens to open up and take him right there. He wanted to be anywhere but there. "What does she have that I don't have? Huh?" She stormed passed him and around the corner to where his car must have been parked.

"Forgive my wife. She's not well." He rounded the same corner. Lindsay was standing at his car holding the back door open for his 'passenger'. "I'm gonna get you for that Monroe…big time."

"Don't blame me; your friend sent me down here to, and I quote, 'give you a hard time'"

"Oh, this is payback for the plastic suit."

"Payback for the who?"

"After Danny came in hobbling and all stiff a few weeks ago, he mentioned something about an e-mail Stella sent you with pictures of him in the white biohazard suits. I found one and gave it to him. If he was like that after pictures with the suit, I figured the real thing would be better."

Lindsay was dying. She was howling with laughter that was echoing off the buildings around them. Flack stood and looked confused. Lindsay couldn't string more than one or two words together before she would start laughing again. "You think…it...was…the suits…that got me…hot and bothered."

"Okay, what did I miss?"

"There was another picture of Danny at the end of the e-mail. It was that one that resulted in him…" She didn't want to give the details but just imagining what all happened that night warmed her insides and brought a smile to her lips. "…coming in the way he did."

**

Lindsay got home from her interesting and enlightening meeting with Flack and sat down in front of her computer. Hooking her phone to the computer she copied a few images to an e-mail.

_To: SBonasera; JAngell_

_From: LMonroe_

_Subject: Pictures to share_

_Dear girls, _

_I had an interesting encounter today. I have included the photos of the event._

_--Lindsay_

She hit 'send' and got up to start dinner.

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_What do ya think?_


	69. Chapter 69

This has been a most excellent week for me and writing. I have had a lot of down time at school and have been writing like mad. Here it is.

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_November 5, 2008 – I haven't written in a journal since high school and it feels a little silly. Today my life changed and since I don't' want to talk to anyone about it yet, I thought I would write it down, seems as good a day to start as any. I'm pregnant. Wow, that's weird, writing it down. I haven't been feeling well lately. For weeks I blamed it on being allergic to something in my building, stress, not eating, not sleeping, and even it being a various mixture of things that my student gave me, but we're two months into the school year and it still can't shake whatever it was. I back tracked in my calendar and saw that I didn't mark the day that my period started. I thought back and knew that it hadn't started at all. I wondered and worried for the three days until I got up enough courage to buy a test. Having a test in one thing but actually using it is another thing. But it was positive._

_Now I'm living out the rest of my life in my head and maybe getting some of it down on paper will help._

_I'm nervous. How do I tell my mom? How do I tell Danny? "I'm pregnant, could you pass the mashed potatoes?" won't work around here. It'd be pasta anyway. How far along am I? Maybe it happened the night after I got that e-mail from Stella with the photos. That means I'm only about five to six weeks along. Baby would come in June or July. That's not bad. I wouldn't need to take time off from school. But who will watch the baby when school starts? Maybe Danny's parents would like to spend time with him, her, him, whatever._

_What if Danny doesn't want this baby? What if he thinks we're not ready? Is the passed year really behind us? Should be get married? What if I have to move out? I need to figure all of this out._

Lindsay's mind was racing as she wrote the last sentence. She closed and put her new journal away from prying eyes. She felt a little lighter because some of what she felt was down on paper and not in her brain. It was still busy just not as. A warm bath was in order. The warm water hugged her close and calmed her body but not her mind. She didn't know what to do. Not telling Danny for a few days would do her no harm and maybe help her to gather her thoughts.

**

A few days of waiting turned into three weeks of school that went passed like a rocket. Each day was planned to the minute and she was wearing herself out with her field trips and guest speakers. She had to teach and cover the standards also.

One of her field trips crossed paths with Danny. They were visiting a house that was being moved. The owner of the company gave a presentation to the class about the complexities of moving a structure, load bearing walls, and everything else. They arrived just in time to see the semi load the house onto a barge at the pier. They followed the house in a bus on land while the house went down the river. Lindsay dropped her head and shook it when she saw the police boats pull up to it. Then she saw the coast guard speed boat come up and Danny's form stepped up on the barge from the boat. She knew then that something was wrong. When the barge docked, the bus pulled up and stopped. Danny and Lindsay spoke for a few minutes about what was going on and then she boarded the bus, explained to the kids what was going on, and they left. Lindsay made sure to tell Danny about any more field trips that were on her calendar after that.

**

The holiday season was right around the corner. A new schedule at the lab was issued that put Danny back on days. As soon as he heard the news he tried to call Lindsay but got no answer. The clock read 8pm. He tried one more time and got back to work.

**

The smell of sausage made her eyes open the next morning. No one had been around for a while to make her breakfast in the morning. It was usually a bagel and a banana with a glass of milk for her. Danny would be coming in or asleep on the couch when she was leaving. Sausage must mean something. Sleepily shuffling down the hall she went to the kitchen.

"Mmm, morning." She greeted him.

"There's my girl."

"What's all this about?" There was juice, rolls, toast, eggs, and the sausage on the stove sizzling.

"I'm back on days for a while. I do a turn around today, so I walk out the door with you today." He saw how she had her arms wrapped around herself. "You alright?" He moved the links around to keep them from burning. "Ya know, I called you last night."

"I went to bed a bit early."

"A bit early? I called at 8."

"I've been busy." She became defensive. "When you are not around I sleep."

He surrendered to her wide mood swing with his hands up and a spatula in his hands. "Okay, okay." He went back to cooking. "Dinner out or in tonight?"

"Out."

"Sure, sure. Meet me at the lab after work?"

"I'll be there with bells." She told him.

"No whistles, I'm offended." They filled their plates and feasted.

**

Lindsay didn't tell Danny about only teaching half the day. Her second ultrasound was that afternoon. She packed up her school bag as the class exited her room.

"Hey, Ms. Monroe, you okay?" Leon was one of her quieter students. He was extremely bright and noticed everything.

"Yeah kiddo, I'm good, why?"

"You just seem to be weighted down with something."

"Naa, just busy and tired." She was telling him the truth, just not all of it.

"You need to go back to drinking coffee. I saw that you haven't been drinking it lately."

"It's not good for the…" She caught herself just before the word 'baby' spilled from her lips. "Body, it's not good for the body."

"Don't I know it. My auntie gave up coffee because her doctor told her it wasn't good for her baby. She was nuts for the first few days and then she started eating crazy stuff. But she carried a glass of water with her everywhere and had crackers scattered in the house all over the place." Leon looked at the top of her desk and saw the giant bottle of water that had become Lindsay's constant companion and the half eaten sleeve of Saltine crackers. His eyes got great big. "Have a great rest of the afternoon, Ms. Monroe." He backed out of the classroom. "Hey guys…"

**

She took a leisurely lunch down the street from the clinic. She would have a new picture of the jelly bean to take home. The first image was of a mass of cells that would one day be her baby, but it really looked like a jelly bean. Maybe at dinner she'd have enough courage to tell him about it. Throughout lunch she came up with all the various ways to tell him. A better feeling about being pregnant grew inside.

Then her eyes met his at the clinic and she panicked. What was he doing there, was he there to confront her about the baby? How did he know that she was going to be there? She left the area and called her doctor to apologize about cancelling her appointment.

**

Danny debated for the rest of the day if it was really Lindsay at the clinic or not. She didn't say anything about going. In his brain he knew that she was not feeling well, but not bad enough to do to the doctor. And if it wasn't her, then why did the mysterious woman look so spooked and then run off. He was worried. Secrets were being kept again and that had him on edge.

The elevator was being monitored more by him than the security crew down stairs and he wasn't letting anything pass and he was not getting anything done.

The elevator dinged upon its arrival and Lindsay stepped out. Danny checked the clothes to see if it was what the mystery woman was wearing at the clinic and it matched.

The smells and fumes of the lab hit her and she rushed to the locker room to get away from it. Others working around Danny jolted awake when he dashed away from the computer he was working at.

"Lindsay, wait up." She was too fast and seemed to be on a mission.

"Danny, hey." She rested again the cool metal of the locker and he stopped in front of her.

"What's going on?"

"What do you mean?"

He got closer. "Come on Lindsay, I saw you today at the health center. Are you sick?"

"Danny you should get back to work." This was not one of the scenarios she had in her mind about telling the Danny that he was the father of her child. The locker room never played a part, but he took her by the arms.

"No…no, you should talk to me."

The wave of nausea was coming back. "I…uh…I." She covered her mouth and bolted away from him and into the stall on the women's side. She emptied the contents of her stomach in to the toilet.

"What's the matter? Are you okay?" He got no answer. "Lindsay, hey!" Lindsay heard him hit the door in total frustration. "What the hell is going on?"

She wondered if she stayed in there long enough if he would just go away. He still had work to do and someone would come looking for him. She listened closely and rhythmic footsteps of someone pacing could be heard. I looked like they were really going to have this conversation in the equivalent of the bathroom, but she was not going to tell him from the confines of a bathroom stall. She went back to where he was.

"Are you okay? Are you alright?" The concern and frustration she heard in his voice grew by the minute.

Unsure about her stomach's stability and gave a short nod. She leaned back against the lockers and faced him. A sigh of determination left her body.

"I'm pregnant."

Emotions played out across his face like acts of a play. Shock. Confusion. Panic. She sat through until the finale. "Are you sure?" The non verbal communication from her was read loud and clear. The black and white image was held out at him. In his hands it looked at it carefully. Her name, the date, doctor's name and weeks of gestation were listed in one corner and in the middle was a picture of their baby; something they made together. "How long have you known?"

"A few weeks. Go finish your shift and we can talk."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Why didn't you tell me?" She saw all the emotions on his face, but his voice screamed that he was hurt by the lateness of the news. "Look you can't just drop this on me and walk away. Please."

"I'm not going anywhere. Go finish your shift. You have twenty minutes left and then we talk." Her hand fell over his heart almost as a promise.

**

It could have been twenty minutes; it could have been twenty years. The time crawled and wanting out of the office as bad as he did made it crawl even slower. His case moved forward. The victims' parents would be in the next afternoon. There was nothing else to do that night. He went in search of Lindsay and found her fast asleep on the couch in what used to be their office.

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How'd I do with it?


	70. Chapter 70

_Thank you for helping me get to chapter 70. It has been a long haul and I appreciate all the kind words that everyone has given me. I would not have been able to do this without you._

_I have signed up for nanowrimo and from Nov 1 to the 30the I will be focusing totally on a new story and not updating this story. Fear not, i will be back and working on this again once November is over. If all goes will, i will have another story to publish._

_I will try and get as many quality chapters published here before November. _

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"Stell." Danny caught her by the arm as he passed by and rushing to the elevator. His helmet was tightly tucked under one arm. Stella whipped around to look him in the face. "Stella, do me a favor, Lindsay is asleep in our office. If she wakes up before I get back, have her call me. She's going to be frantic if she thinks I left her and I don't need that and neither does she. I need to go out for a while, but I will be back. Keep an eye on her for me." She didn't give an answer. She was hardly was able to keep up with what he was saying. He gave her an appreciative pat on the arm and he dashed away.

**

Danny rode along the familiar street of the city, but everything seemed out of focus. Lindsay's news had thrown him for a whirl. Nothing looked the way it should. No complete thought formed in his head. The words just replayed on a loop in his head.

She's pregnant.

She's pregnant.

She has a baby, our baby, growing inside her.

She's been rolling this around by herself in her head for three weeks. If he was confused how must she feel?

He found himself at a stop sign at the end of the street where he grew up. He pulled to the side of the street and out of traffic. The empty lot where he and Louie played baseball and football with other neighbor kids was next to him. Ghostly images of two little boys running around and laughing played before him.

On the sidewalk a father helped his son ride his bike. Danny could remember the security of knowing his father would never let him fall. It was a feeling only his father could give him. A feeling only he could give to own child as a father. A feeling he could give to his child that Lindsay was carrying. A child they made out of love. Lindsay was having his baby. Lindsay was pregnant.

What the hell was he doing way out here?

He pulled away from the curb and passed his parents' house with the thought of buying earplugs to cut down on the squealing his ears heard when they told his mother.

**

Lindsay was still fast asleep when he got back to the office. Stella told him that the vic's parent had arrived early and spoke with her and Mac. They arrested the doctor for baby brokerage and obstruction.

Stella spoke in whispered voices outside the door of the office. An observant eye kept peek at Lindsay.

"You two okay?" She asked him.

"Yeah, she's not feeling well and hasn't been sleeping at night."

"Alright. I'll keep you posted on what's going on. You stay with Lindsay."

"Thanks."

Danny gingerly eased himself into his chair as quietly as he could. It wasn't even 6pm yet and the horizon still had a few lingering fingers of light holding onto the day. Lindsay rested peacefully and he watched her. Silently he got into the internet and googled pregnancy. Every site mentioned, sites, or quoted a reference book that he would have to purchase to help Lindsay through and to ensure his own survival until the baby was born. He saw slide shows, videos, diagrams, time lines, and ultrasound images. He compared Lindsay's ultrasound to those online and figured she was about 14-16 weeks along. Her due date would be some time in May. In the not too far future he would be a father thanks to the beautiful woman across the room. It wasn't much time to get everything together. A heavy weight came upon him again and his mind went fuzzy again.

Stella tapped at the window lightly. He glided out of the small room without a sound. "We know where the baby is. Flack is there, I'm on my way. As soon as the baby is checked out, child services will be here to hand custody over to the grandparents; shouldn't take too long. Can you go talk to them and let them know what's going on?"

"Yeah, I can do that."

Danny wandered away from his office to where the victim's parents sat worried and waiting for their grandson.

"Mr. and Mrs. Harris, I'm Danny Messer, one of the crime scene investigators working the case. Child services will be here shortly." Danny took a heavy seat on the bench. A long sigh left his lunch and he rubbed at his face with his hands.

"Are you okay son?" He paused for a minute and asked another question. "Do you have any kids?" Mr. Harris was just making conversation; something to fill the time that they waited.

Danny soulfully unloaded his current emotional baggage on the couple for the next hour. He talked about growing up, careers, his love for Lindsay, and the things that might be standing in their way, their baby, his fears. He didn't realize what all he had said until he looked into their eyes and saw how heavy they looked.

They were interrupted by the arrival of Mac with Stella carrying a baby. Under Danny's watchful eye, the bundle was passed to the waiting arms of his grandparents. He watched how they cradled the small child and supported him carefully. All were standing around saying their good-byes at the end of the hall. Danny looked up to at movement out of the corner of his eye.

Lindsay was awake and found him. She walked slowly towards the group and stood next to Danny. The Harris family walked away with Mac and Stella. Danny and Lindsay didn't know what to do.

Once there were left alone in the hall, Danny turned to his girlfriend, lovingly took her into his arms and placed the gentlest kiss on her forehead. It was an apology, it was for love; it was for support and even for the future. He held her against his body and wished for the right thing to say. Nothing came to mind. A gentle sway moved their bodies as one. He imagined the moment in the future with their growing baby between them as her pregnancy progressed. He imagined the moment with their baby in their arms between them.

He stepped back and let his eyes wander down her boy to her abdomen. One hand rested there, holding their child; eyes closed, memory made.

"So, I hear you're having my baby."

And her happy tears spilled along with three weeks' worth of emotional stress.

**

He sat behind her in the tub with his hands still over their baby. Her fingers ran up down his arms as she filled him in on what she knew. She rested her head back on his shoulder where she could see the side of his face. He listened attentively about doctor's appointments and bad foods she was not supposed to eat. He had only one question: who was being told when?

"Parents, we'll tell them this weekend when we can do it together. I have to tell my principal so he understands about me leaving for appointments."

"I need to tell Mac for the same reason." Wonder filled her face. "What?"

"I love the idea of you coming to my appointments."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world."

His commitment earned him a kiss.

"I want to tell our friends at Christmas. I want this to be our thing for just a little bit longer."

"Sounds good." He told her. "We have to get a crib, stroller, bottles, teeny tiny clothes, diapers. We need to clean out the extra room and get it ready for wee one here."

"We have time…and lots of friends who will be willing to help." Their hands laced together. "I love you and I'm sorry I waited so long to tell you."

"I love you too."

**

Danny and Lindsay stood on the front porch of his childhood home longer than they normally did. They stared at the door for who knows how long before finally entering the house. Danny took their coats and headed for the kitchen.

Lindsay hung back and looked at the family pictures hanging on the walls. She'd passed them so many times without a second thought, but this time she studied them closely. The school photos, the yearly family portraits, the sport action shots, she looked and the child's features and wondered which of these she would see in the face of their child. She wondered how many images like these would fill their walls. In a motion she'd done many times, her hand covered the baby inside and a contented smile appeared. She moved slowly down the hall watching Danny grow up in the photos.

Mama Messer passed the doorway leading to the hall from the kitchen on her way to stir the stew on the stove and glanced at Lindsay. She back tracked a few steps and really looked at her. Two hands came up to cover her mouth and a loud gasp escaped her mouth. Lindsay looked around to see what might have warranted such a reaction and then looked at herself. She stood with a hand on her hip and another one covering her belly; the typical pregnant lady stance. She was immediately wrapped in Mama's arms and Mama knew.

**

Lindsay giggled as they pulled away from the house. Danny's mother made the typical comments. She was told to get off of her feet, she was told to get more to eat (she was eating for two after all). She asked about marriage and their future plans.

Lindsay put her head against the window and fell asleep.

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_Let me know how I did please, please, please._


	71. Chapter 71

_This might be the last chapter FOR A LITTLE WHILE. I am not leaving it, just getting ready for nanowrimo. Enjoy._

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Lindsay hoped that the tears that spilled down her cheeks on Christmas Day would be the last time it happened for a while. It seemed she cried almost every day in December so far. Her hormones were all out of sorts and she would cry at puppy food commercials. She cried if they ran out of dishwasher soap and when she left her grade book at school. Thankfully most of the nausea was subsiding, but her emotional outbursts were crazy.

**

She called her mother and father after getting home from Sunday lunch with Danny's parents. She told them about the baby, her parents squealed and Lindsay cried. Danny had to take the phone and finish the conversation. They were excited and told Danny they would come out for Christmas. Her parents asked questions and Danny answered the best he could.

**

Danny called her one day on his way into work. He was late; something about the Q train being an express and doubling back. Before the call was cut off he told her he needed to talk to her about something important. She hopped Danny picked up the crib they ordered. She hoped he spent the morning putting it together and painting the nursery. That would be wishful thinking. She just had to wait and see what was so important.

After school she always stopped at the lab. Quietly she looked around and didn't see her wonderful boyfriend. She answered the call of her stomach and went out to find food. The donuts smelled really good as she walked in.

"I thought I saw you running for the exit." Danny ran up to her as she paid for her snack.

"I'm starving; my OB says that I should pay attention to my cravings, no matter how inconvenient they are."

Danny's nerves made him deaf to her words. "Yeah, yeah. Let me ask you something. Do you have any history of heredity disease in your family?" It wasn't the real questions he wanted to ask, but that might take some time to build up the courage; Lindsay laughing at the question was not helping. She swallowed the bite she took and straightened up to mirror his seriousness.

"No, do you?"

"No, no…no, mental illness?"

Lindsay thought the line of questioning was odd. "No."

"Uh, how about addictive tendencies? Extra fingers? Extra toes?"

"No…no." This was weird.

"Natural delivery or drugs?"

She hadn't thought about it. "Ah…either."

"Boy or girl?"

"Healthy."

He took a deep breath and pumped himself up. "Will you marry me?"

Lindsay was surprised. They hadn't talked marriage for a long time. It was a sweet gesture; one she was not expecting and it felt to her a little forced; maybe forced because of other family members expectations. She did want to marry him but on their terms, not someone else's. She gave him the only answer she could. "No." And she pressed a hand to his heart hoping to soften the blow. So that she didn't have to see the look in his eyes any longer than she had to, she moved away. He didn't see the tears that fell down her cheeks.

He wondered if she would come back to the lab before he headed home. He switched shifts; he wanted to hang around and tell Mac about the baby with Lindsay. He wondered if he ruined everything by asking her to marry him. He watched the halls for her return. He thought waiting for her to come to the lab on the day he saw her at the clinic was long, this was worse. The time to go home got closer and closer. Five minutes before the end of shift, she appeared. They walked together down the hall.

"So, you wanna uh, you wanna tell me why you won't marry me?"

"I didn't mean I won't. I just think it's the wrong time."

"Wrong time or wrong guy?"

He took it wrong. She knew he would. The rejection earlier hurt him. She sighed. "Danny, I know I have thrown a lot at you and we are both feeling really overwhelmed, but whatever we do next, I want it to be for the right reason. Wouldn't you rather walk down the aisle than be pushed?"

"Of course." Some of the hurt melted into the floor between them and the gap didn't seem so wide.

"Okay, cause listen, I'm not going anywhere, and I now you're not going anywhere either, okay, but this is not just about you and me anymore, so let's take baby steps, okay?" She hoped the joke would ease him even more.

He was at ease about the marriage thing, but now he was getting nervous about talking to Mac. "Okay, before we go inside, I wanna just tell you one more thing okay…" He held Lindsay at arm's length. "I just want you to know that I love you."

"I love you too, Danny."

The secure feeling of his hand in the middle of her lower back gave Lindsay a better feeling and it gave Danny a shield in case Mac threw anything at him. Mac eyed them suspiciously. It was odd for Danny to be there that late and it was surprising to see Lindsay there that late on a school night.

"Mac, we need to talk to you.

He put the file down on his desk that he was reviewing and gave his attention to the obviously nervous man in front of him. "Alright."

"Uh, I'm gonna need to take an hour or so off every once in a while to go with Lindsay to see her OB." It wasn't the best announcement/request. "Lindsay's pregnant. She's having my baby."

Mac's brow shot up at the news and an amused smile came to his lips. He didn't smile much out of pure happiness, but the occasion called for it. Out of his chair, he approached the two and opened his arms for an embrace of joy. "Congratulations you two."

In a close knit conversation, they whispered the details and wishes of keeping it secret until Christmas. Mac looked at Lindsay and already saw a small bump where their future was growing. He hoped they could cover things and hide it until Christmas. Mac talked and listened like a proud grandfather and Lindsay bawled like a baby.

**

December 12th happened and she cried. Danny watched the date approach on the calendar and hope the star on the date would be explained.

At the end of her school day, she came to the lab holding a small bouquet of flowers down in front of her. She found Danny and told him they had some place to be.

He was clueless. The cab pulled into the cemetery. The muted colors of the sky and the faded leaves in the trees added to the somber location. Lindsay had a map and directed the driver on where to go. The brakes whined when they slowed to a stop and Lindsay got out and led Danny to a simple stone. She rested the flowers at the base of the stone and stepped back.

Danny could see the name of the marker: Ruben Sandoval. He realized that it was a year ago that he died. Lindsay cried. Ghosts of the past were dug up and dealt with.

When it got too cold for her, she went back to the waiting car and waited. Tears streamed down her cheeks. She watched Danny kneel down and brush debris from the base of the headstone, his fingers traced the name and then his head bowed. He stayed out in the December air for a long time. He walked back to the car, his shoulders slumped. His fingers were half frozen when they laced with hers again. The residual moisture proved her tears were not the only ones shed.

**

The rest of the days leading to Christmas were much happier, not a tear in sight. The eagerness to share their news grew. The tree went up, stockings were hung, and carols sung. Lindsay's parents arrived and she thought that would be her undoing, but she held them away. School let out for the holidays and Lindsay filled her time with baby talk and Christmas shopping.

**

She turned away from the window where snow was falling again. Their announcement would soon be made. Their whole family would soon know. It was funny to see how the group had separated themselves: her parents, Danny's parents and Mac were all hovering near the Christmas tree talking very quietly, probably about the baby. Danny's mom was the lookout person and they all stopped talking when others would come close. Everyone else was standing around in small groups enjoying the holiday atmosphere.

A gasp from down the hall halted everything. Stella passed the half closed door to what was once the storage room and saw it cleaned out and a new sort of items being stored there: baby needs. The crib was set up and in sight. Mac rushed over to try and sooth her questions before she said a word, but no such luck. She met Mac half way through the room and read his eyes. She let out an excited squeak.

"What's the deal with Stella?" Flack asked to no one in particular.

From across the room Lindsay answered loud enough for the whole group to hear. "She just figured out that Danny and I are going to have a baby."

"Oh." It was a natural 'Flack' response when getting a good answer to a question. He mindlessly went back to the conversation he was having with his girlfriend. The room went into a delayed reaction. They all heard the words, they were just unexpected and didn't process. Knowing smirks played on the faces of those who already knew while they waited for the eruption and when it came, Lindsay spared a few more tears.

**

"Danny, come quick. I think I have one more Christmas gift for you." Danny curiously wiped his hands on the dish towel and left the kitchen. Christmas lights and candles cast a glow around her on the couch. "She's moving again; maybe you can feel this time."

"She?"

"She, he, it, they, whatever…"

"Whoa, whoa, they?"

"Okay fine… she, he, whatever…I felt movement again, get over here." The baby was awake when she taught; it would react to the sound of her voice when she was teaching. Danny missed it every time so far. Christmas Day would be the perfect time to feel it for the first time. He settled next to her on the couch and let her guide his hand over her ever growing belly to where she felt it.

And there on Christmas Day after sharing their news with their friends, in the stillness of the apartment, he felt his child.

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Enjoy, review, give feedback, let me know you'll miss the story...I'll be back soon.


	72. Chapter 72

_Trick or Treat - This was a holiday surprise even to me. This is snippets of time through Valentine's Day. Enjoy._

The nerve of people. She wanted to hand a sign around her neck warning people not to touch her belly. People would just reach out and touch her as if they were going to shake hands and missed. Some reached out and touched as if they were testing produce and felt all around. There was no formal introduction just hello, squeeze, when are you due?

And then there were the looks she got. She was always alone, no ring on her finger and she would get the most disapproving looks. It really didn't matter to her at first, but after a few weeks of it, she wanted to get a cheap ring and slip it on when she was out in public. It was awkward but she got most of the looks at school.

**

Danny treated her like a queen. He insisted that she go straight home after school and not meet him at the lab. She didn't need to be out in the cold any longer than necessary. Her arguments fell on deaf ears and home was the new destination. Danny would sneak out early to be there; work always came home with him. Mac liked the idea, Danny got more done that way.

"Hey baby how much do you believe in coincidence?" He asked from the kitchen table one night.

"A little, a lot, I don't know…why?"

"We've got two separate cases where women were raped by the same man, but years and years apart."

"Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin died on the same day, 50 years after signing the Declaration of Independence." Danny gave her a completely unbelieving look, but she went on. "In 1975, a man driving a moped was struck and killed by a taxi, one year later the victim's brother was also killed in the same way, with the same driver, AND the same passenger." He was still staring. She was going to keep going. "Kennedy had a secretary named Lincoln and Lincoln had a secretary named Kennedy." He shook his head and went back to his papers. She was filling his head with useless facts.

"So do you believe it?" He asked again.

"Sure. I guess."

**

The next day Danny had Lindsay on the brain, all the facts she'd shared whirled around in his mind. He stopped and talked to Sid about the case and he stated that Mark Twain was born the year Haley's Comet came around then died 75 years later when it came around again. It was a strange coincidence and Danny asked if Sid had talked to Lindsay lately.

**

The connection between Danny and Lindsay grew stronger as the days passed and their child grew. He wondered at her energy and attitude that came with being pregnant. She bounded up stairs two at a time, glided through the apartment and balanced everything in her life well. It hadn't slowed her down and she was already six months pregnant, only three more months, in three months he was going to have a family.

**

It was Saturday; he had the day off, a fresh blanket of snow covered everything outside the glass window in their room. Blankets cocooned them in a bundle of warmth. The few stupid birds that decided to brave the cold of New York winter were out in the sunshine and sand their songs as solos. She spooned further back into his embrace and drifted between asleep and awake. He was fully alert and wrapped her from behind. Tiny flutters under his hands told him his baby was also starting to stir which mean Lindsay would be awake soon. Days, mornings like these wouldn't continue with a little one. Plus it was cold outside the barrier they made; she would gladly stay wrapped up all day.

But he made plans for the day. It was Saturday, he had the day off and it was Valentine's Day. He told her weeks ago that she didn't need to worry about anything, he had a plan. That was the last she heard about it.

**

The day proceeded as if it were any day off together. Breakfast followed by straightening, laundry, and casually reading the paper. He forgot, it was understandable, it's not like they were busy thinking about the baby or school work or the cases he was working.

They were busy.

No big deal…sniff…really.

She lay down for her weekend afternoon nap thinking about she would make for dinner.

**

She finally fell asleep, he thought to himself. He knew she thought he'd forgotten. But it was quite the opposite. The whole week was spent planning: flowers, carriages, gifts, researching, checking of hours of places around town. It was all the start when she woke up.

He wrote a quick note on the board in the kitchen and dashed out of the apartment. Lindsay's naps were very unpredictable; they could be three hours long or fifteen minutes. He turned on his Speedy Gonzales mode and hurried.

**

Her nap would only last 45 minutes. That was bad luck for him because he wasn't back yet. She felt to see if he lay down with her like he usually did but her hand came back empty. Slowly she sat up, throwing her feet over the edge of the bed. The apartment was entirely too quiet. Corners were peeked around to see if he was asleep on the couch.

She liked to watch him sleep. She liked to watch him work. She liked to watch him tinker with his bike, play ball with Flack, interrogate suspects, walk, talk, eat, smile, write, cook, clean, vacuum, run…active Danny in her imagination was a turn on. Where was he when she needed him?

His note was no help.

_Montana, go back to sleep, had to run out and take care of a few things. You need your rest, go back to bed. D-_

It said nothing of where he was, only what he wanted her doing, but she followed orders and went back to bed hoping to have great dreams of active Danny.

**

He could barely slide the key in the lock, his hands were so full. The corner quick mart was awful busy for a Saturday afternoon, but there were many other guys there like himself who were out doing last minute Valentine's Day shopping. He wasn't there getting anything for Valentine's Day. They needed milk, bread, and those peanut butter cup things. He ate the last one the night before and if she needed a chocolate fix, he was in trouble. They key finally slid into the door and did its magic. The door knob posed a whole new set of challenges. It was only with the key still in the lock, bags shifted in his arms painfully, hunched over to get a good look at the location of the object and his hand barely sticking out that he was able to open the door. He rushed to bags to the kitchen counter and then back to the door to get his keys.

From the looks of things, Lindsay was still asleep.

He found a container for the flower and quietly snuck them to their bed side table. She was fast asleep. He couldn't watch her too long; there was still food to put away.

**

The flowers were a beautiful sight. They were the first thing she saw when her eyes opened again. Delicate white daisies mixed in with red roses and baby's breath. There was a single pink rose hidden in there, she assumed for their baby. He was back.

The flowers were a beautiful sight, but the sight of Danny was better. And it's not what she saw that kept her staring for so long; it was what could be that had her leaning against the wall and counting his breaths.

A basketball game was muted on the TV and the remote was on the floor. Glasses were on the coffee table, shoes off on the floor, ankles were crossed, body stretched out to cover the length of the couch. His shirt was unbuttoned and opened away from his chest; a throw pillow hugged tightly to his undershirt holding it securely, his cheek rested against the top edge of the pillow, and eyes closed, deep in sleep. It wasn't hard to take the pillow out and replace it with the form of a peacefully sleeping child taking a nap with its daddy. She wanted to cry, she wanted to melt, she wanted to hold this memory in her hand and take it everywhere forever. A photograph would never have the same feeling as what she was witnessing right now.

She crossed the living room to the kitchen and took the sight with her. Mugs came together as she got a drink of water and shifting fabric against fabric could be heard from the other room. Soon she no longer was alone in the kitchen. Warm arms rested at her waist and again the same warmth from the morning reached her core.

"I love my flowers. They're beautiful."

"They're just the beginning, how quickly can you be ready to leave?"

A flirty look went over her shoulder at him. "Where are we going?"

"For a Valentine's Day adventure."

"Give me five minutes."

**

They did too much, her back was telling her that loud and clear when the elevator stopped at their floor. A walk in the park, carriage ride that stopped right out in front of the baby boutique where they bought the baby carriage she wanted so badly. It would be delivered in the next few days. They had their picture taken with one of the love statues that were scattered in the city. The one they had their picture taken with was at 6th and 56th. He took her to Union Square for a bite to eat before whisking her to the top of the Empire State building for sparkling apple juice out of champagne glasses. She was tired and wanted to become one with the bed, but he still had other ideas.

Very strategically he positioned pillows on the bed and had her lay on her side. He moved the six pillows around until everything was supported. Stress was taken off of her back and belly. Then he started kneading the muscles in her back with soft fists, starting at her neck and moving down to her rear. All the miles logged from the night that were coiled up in her back were fading away. Very carefully he worked on her feet and lower legs, always moving up and pushing whatever swelling she had away. In her mind she decided that he would have to do that each night. Walking around on hard floors was murder on her back and the only relief she found was in the bath tub and the warm water did all the work.

"Where did you learn this?" Came out as a moan rather than clear concise words.

"Internet." He was still pushing blood flow back to the heart from her legs. Swelling was going down by the minute.

"Did you catch the name of the person who published the information?"

"No."

"Go back and check again, I want to send them a thank you note."

He chuckled at her relief and kept working. When sleep overtook her and there was no hope of having any room for him on the bed for the night, the couch became his retreat and he fell asleep knowing he'd done good.

_This was all written as relief from working on preparation for _Swan Song _ which I will publish as part of NaNoWriMo._ _I was not expecting it to come about but here is it. Tell me what you think._


	73. Chapter 73

_Hey folks, I am back!!!! I conquered NATIONAL NOVEL WRITING MONTH and wrote my 50,000 words towards a new story that I will edit while on vacation and start publishing hopefully around Christmas. I want to give a huge shout out to those who have been around and reviewed. When I got stuck writing Swan Song for NaNoWriMo I went back and reread the supportive words you wrote so thank you:_

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_Hey guys I am back…Are you? Drop me a line letting me know you are still out there. Here's the next installment of Different Beginnings._

__

"I need to do what?" The doctor shared information about her condition that she was not thrilled to hear. It was supposed to be a normal check up. She raised a few concerns about some back pain she was having but other than that she was supposed to be in and out.

"Standing on the hard concrete floor is not good for your legs or your back, plus your blood pressure is really high. You need to slow down a little."

Slow down, how in the world could she slow down? She was a teacher. Telling a teacher to slow down would be like telling a fish not to swim or a toddler, ready for church, not to play in the mud on their way to the car. She couldn't slow down. Midterm exams were coming and it took a lot out of her to get the students ready. There were review sheets to make out, supervisors to call about student progress, papers to grade. How was she supposed to slow down when she had all this work?

"You need to stay off your feet as much as you can." The doctor added.

"You're kidding right? I teach, I have to move around. There's no standing still in teaching."

He looked at her chart. "You have one week to get off your feel and bring your blood pressure down or I'm going to order you to bed."

"This one's daddy would enjoy it too much if you ordered me to bed." A soothing hand rubbed across her belly and thought wandered to the handsome detective waiting at home.

"Lindsay, I'm serious. It's not healthy for the baby or you. You have one week." He made a note in her chart and gave her an appointment card as a reminder…like she would forget. "Slow down and take it easy."

**

On the way home she tried to convince herself that the doctor was right but his request was ridiculous. She couldn't sit all day and there was nothing in her life that she could eliminate to help bring her blood pressure down. Each step she took she became more and more frustrated with the doctor's orders. The words rolled around in her brain. She mocked them out loud. "Slow down, take it easy." She gave an eye roll to no one. "Whatever."

She was still spitting doctor's words out when she walked in and threw her bag on the chair. The words were not clear or loud enough for Danny to understand but he heard something. She went to the kitchen and pulled a glass down for a drink of water. Curiosity finally got the better of Danny and he followed the ranting pregnant lady. He heard words firing from her mouth. They were not flattering to whoever she was talking about.

"Whoa, who are you talking about?" She went on not hearing him. "Hey Linds slow down there, who earned your wrath now?"

That did it. Her head whipped around to face him. "Not you too."

"Me too what?"

"Telling me to slow down. The doc just went off on me about slowing down, standing too much, and my blood pressure being too high." The last thing was mumbled and rushed.

"What was that?"

She shook her head and met his eyes. "My blood pressure is too high."

"What did the doc say about it?"

"I have one week to bring it down and spend time off my feet." She said it hoping that he would find it as ridiculous as she did.

"Then what the hell you doin' standing at the sink?" He ushered out of the kitchen. "I'd like to introduce you to your new best friend. Lindsay this is the couch, couch this is Lindsay. Now sit. Can I get you anything?"

"No, I'm good."

"What is your punishment if you don't follow the doctor's orders?" From the way she was cussing up a storm it must have been have been pretty serious.

"Early leave to sit at home and put my feet up."

"Would that be so bad?" He took a seat next to her and her body automatically leaned over into his.

"It's early March. I'm not even 30 weeks yet. What would I do for ten weeks while I was for our watermelon to grow? I'd go crazy."

"You could go home for a while, see your mom and dad. Maybe even for a few weeks or something."

"Yeah, I guess I could. It just feels weird having someone else teach my classes while I sit and do nothing. I could be teaching instead."

"You don't just sit and teach though. The doctor did not tell you to stop teaching. He told you to get off your feet. Your stress is not good for the watermelon. By the way, why is it a watermelon today?" His eyes went to her very round abdomen.

"Watermelons don't have a specified sex. We don't know the sex yet. It's kept its legs crossed or the angles have been wrong when we have ultrasounds and it feels like I'm carrying around a watermelon today." She hesitated. "The doctor said the same thing."

"What, about you carrying around a watermelon?" His face screwed up.

"No. He said me going all the time, classes, field trips, moving around is not good for the baby."

"And you said..?"

"After I told him I couldn't, he said I have a week. I left and yelled at him in my head all the way home."

"Yeah, I heard the end of it." He played with a fold in the fabric of his jeans. "So what can we do?"

"Nothing. I have a feeling in a week I will take up permanent residence on this couch until the end of May."

"I love you and will be here no matter what."

**

Deep breathing. It was a technique for calming nerves, slowing ones heart beat, bringing thought back to focus.

It wasn't working.

He was nervous. Danny didn't know what he was doing there but it was important.

"Can I help you with something sir?"

"Yeah, um…" he looked around for anything that might help. "I'm looking for an engagement ring for my girlfriend.

**

The week was gone and she was back on the paper covered table. No matter what the doctor said, she was ready to take the time off to rest. She talked with her mother and Danny and there were already some plans in place. She was kind of excited to go home and spend time letting her mom take care of her. Danny told her that if she stayed in the city she would find things to keep her busy and her health would not improve. Going home would put her in Montana in the middle of winter and not able to do a lot.

She couldn't wait to see her mom, let her mom see her pregnant, share stories of when her mom was pregnant with her. Be lazy and expecting. No doubt she'd come back to the city with clothes for the baby and toys and blankets and everything else her family would buy. The excitement built each minute she thought about it.

The door to the exam room opened and the doctor had one foot in the door when she blurted out: "You were right. I work too hard and I won't stop unless you tell me to. I'll take that early maternity leave now." It came out a little too eager.

**

The faculty meeting on her last day of school turned into a baby shower. People from her other school were invited and the baby was pretty much set for the first three months of its life. Everything was stacked nearly by the door of her classroom waiting for Danny and the truck to pick her up.

She shuffled around the room straightening things up. She looked at the displays and progress that her students made from the first year. It was unfathomable that she wouldn't be back until last August for meeting to start the next school year.

On her desk were her lesson plans for the next three and a half months. She looked upon them with disappointment in her eyes. Not because they were hastily thrown together, quite the contrary. She put a lot of late hours into those plans and they were extremely detailed. However, she was disappointed because of what she was going to miss: basketball games, baseball games, guest speakers, outings. She wasn't disappointed about the tests or papers that someone else was going to have grade for her. She took her room key from her ring and left it sitting on top of the plans for the substitute.

"Somebody call for a pack mule?" Danny was already picking up the gifts by the door.

"I sure did, but I guess you'll have to do instead." He threw her a dirty look as he picked up another package of diapers.

**

The day was no busier than any other for Danny. He needed an uninterrupted minute to talk to Mac and Stella but he was glued to his computer and phone. One for the case he was working and the other because Lindsay was bored out of her mind in the apartment and calling every five minutes. Danny saw Stella slip into Mac's office. He sent Lindsay a text: "Going into a meeting" and hoped that she got the hint and didn't call for a while. He pushed himself away from the desk and approached the glass enclosed office hoping that no one left if the lab could read lips.

"Mac, Stell…you have a second?" He stood in the doorway looking between the two hoping that they'd tell him they were busy. Something about the way he stood or talked caught Mac's eye and the information he and Stella were looking over was laid on the desk. Stella shot her co-lead a questioning look.

"What do you need Danny?" Mac inquired.

He chuckled at himself. He never thought he'd been so nervous. He could picture the outcome of this conversation and what it meant for his future but he never pictured what he was going to say or how to even open the topic up to two friends or even his bosses.

"Lindsay's leaving Thursday for Montana. She's going to be gone for five weeks.' Both Mac and Stella looked at him and nodded. He pulled the small red box out of his pocket and turned it around in his fingers. "I'm going to marry her Wednesday afternoon and we'll need a few witnesses."

Stella came around the desk and hugged him. "Congratulations. When did you ask her? How did you ask her?"

Danny winced at the questions.

"He hasn't asked her yet." The eyes of the two men in the room met and Danny nodded to tell Mac that he was correct in his assumption.

"Day after tomorrow I'm going to take her to the county clerk's office at the end of my shift. I don't want her going home pregnant and without a husband. I want to her to have something to come back to."

"Danny if that's the only reason…" Mac spoke up.

"I have never felt more sure of something." He held out the small box to Mac. "Please bring these. I'd hate to get there and not have them."

Without consulting Stella he spoke to the request. "Stella and I will be there if we have to walk away from a scene. It's an honor that you would ask. Just tell us when."

Another humble nod in nervous thanks was given and he left the office. The two detectives that he left behind were silently staring at the spot that the younger man had occupied not quite sure what to do next with their time.

**

Pants?

Check

Shirts?

Check

Underwear and bras?

Check.

Socks?

Check

Lindsay stood over her suitcase and double checked the contents. The couch was not her best friend at all on Tuesday, but the washer and dryer were. Every stitch of warm clothing she had was clean and stuffed into two suitcases on their bed. A few of Danny's shirts and pairs of socks were stuffed in also. She wasn't leaving for another day but the packing had to be almost finished because she wanted to hang out at the lab and say goodbye the next day and then fly out the day after.

Into the bag she intended to carry on the plane she packed her journal and camera. The book she picked up at the news stand while out on her daily stroll, that she didn't tell Danny about, also went into the bag. There was one more thing she needed to pack and when she turned around to look for it, it was nowhere to be seen. She hadn't seen it in a while and went in search of it. Her students started a small photo album of their field trips and other class highlights. Each time they did something cool a picture was taken and she added it to the book but she also added photos of the rest of her friends from school and the lab. Her favorite picture of Danny that Stella gave her through e-mail was also included. She wanted to take the book with her.

She moved through the apartment looking in the obvious places for the small book. She was digging in the couch cushions when Danny came home.

"Montana, you lose an earring or something?" Her position gave him a delicious look at her rear end and he stared.

"No, I lost my photo album. I want to take it home to show my parents. Have you seen it?"

Danny's eyes got really big. Parents, he forgot about their parents and how they played into this marriage plan he had for the next forty-eight hours. He needed to make a few phone called before the next afternoon and he didn't see it happening if Lindsay was coming to work with him the next day.

"Got it." She called but not from the couch. Deep panicky thoughts had struck him so hard the he missed Lindsay moving from the living room to the kitchen and dig in a pile of bills and magazines on the end of the table.

"Linds, we need dinner. I'll run and get it. Do you have any preferences?"

"Ooooh, Ray's. Two slices extra pepperoni, thanks."

**

"Hello?"

"Mama Monroe?"

"Danny?"

"Yeah, it's me. I needed to ask or…well I guess tell you something."

His voice was making her anxious. "Is Lindsay okay?"

"Yes ma'am."

She tried not to laugh, but the use of 'ma'am' meant he needed something.

"Then what can I do for you dear?"

"Lindsay's coming home to Montana on Thursday."

"Uh-huh."

"I'd like to marry her before she goes home." He walked down the street with a finger in one ear. He needed to get dinner and get the calls made without taking extra time. He strained to listen to the reaction on the other end.

"Does she need convincing?"

"I haven't asked her yet."

"And you're doing this tomorrow? Why are you calling?"

He felt really silly all of a sudden. "For permission?" He squeaked.

"You had that ages ago. Call me tomorrow night after she says yes."

"Can do."

"Good luck."

"Thanks."

He came to a halt outside Ray's and ended the call before going in. As soon as money changed hands and he was out the door, he called the other number and waited for the voice on the other end.

"Hello?"

"Hi Ma."

"Daniel, what did you do now?"

"Nothing yet, but I thought I'd call you first before I stepped in it this time."

"What are you about to do now?"

"Well Lindsay is leaving for Bozeman the day after tomorrow."

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna ask her to marry me tomorrow before she leaves." There was silence on both ends. "Ma?" More silence. "Hello?"

"What took you so long? Why are you waiting until the last minutes? What am I just now finding out about this? What if she says no?"

He waited until him mother's outburst was over. "Which do you want me to answer first?" He knew that she would slap him in the back of the head if they were having this conversation face to face. "Ma, it hurts that she is going to be away for five weeks. It physically hurts. Nothing has ever felt more right. Nothing has ever made more sense."

He waited for a response. He stood in the lobby of their building for a few minutes hoping to wrap the conversation up.

"Call me tomorrow, honey."

"Yeah, I can do that."

* * *

_Hit the button below and review me. You have no idea what it does for my dwindling confidence and urge to write. (I have to confess that I am going to Disney World for 10 days starting the 4th of December and publishing will be delayed.) I hope to have one more chapter up before I leave. You know what is coming up in the show. It almost writes itself._

_Feedback please._


	74. Chapter 74

_I have just landed and am barely home from the airport. Here this is. I am going to go and sleep for a while and then start working on the next chapter._

* * *

She got up Wednesday morning and showered before Danny's eyes even let in a little bit of light. She found one of the two maternity shirts that she didn't pack and slipped it on. Carefully she worked each button and watched Danny sleep peacefully in their bed. She found her most comfortable jeans and pulled them on. In the kitchen she started Danny's morning coffee and her own cup of tea. It was their routine and it was automatic. Hopefully she wouldn't make the mistake of starting his coffee while she was back home. The machine dripped the rich dark liquid into the pot. Lindsay inhaled deeply. Coffee was on the 'bad foods' list from her doctor and she had to get her fix from the smell alone. She had the aroma deep in her nose when the shower started. A knowing smile appeared because the smell was what finally roused Danny from his slumber. In no time a fresh, clean man joined her in the kitchen. She again breathed deeply and took in his scent and paused. She let out the breath she was holding and handed Danny his morning mug. A sweet kiss was placed on her cheek.

"Morning. Sleep well?" He asked bringing her body into the side of his while taking his first sip.

Tears threatened to spill as she held the memory of that moment in her mind. Danny let her go and went about gathering the rest of the stuff he needed for work. She held the emotion in for now, and did the same thing.

**

She fought with him on the train. It wasn't about anything serious. He found her a seat but she wanted to stand at the rail with his arms around her at the front of the car like they did when they first met and up until she was about four months pregnant. She won and he held her tightly against him. The sway of the car and the position they were in caused her to need his arms to hold her steady. The fact that her body was unbalanced may have had something to do with it also.

**

She had to be signed in again at the desk in the lobby. They stood side by side in the elevator and watched the numbers increase. Her hand was given a generous squeeze when the car came to a stop and then doors opened. In front of the doors waiting with her kit in one hand and phone in the other, Stella stood. Without looking to see if someone was stepping out she started to step in.

Lindsay called out. "Hey Stell."

The other woman looked up and took in the sight of her pregnant friend. "Lindsay, look at you." The two traded places.

"I'll be back later, but I've got to run. You look great." Stella and Danny traded looks and the doors closed.

"I'm gonna see what's going on and I'll see you later." He kissed her cheek again and headed for the locker room. She looked around for any familiar face and found none. She wandered back to Danny's office and deposited her bag and coat on the desk chair. Not much changed. Danny had a few more pictures of her on his desk and an ultra sound print out of their baby. She sat for a second before her phone went off. "Going out to a scene. Will stay in touch." She read. Deciding to see him off, Lindsay walked out of the office towards the elevator. Danny met up with her in the hall. His shirt stretched across his chest when he tugged his jacket on and she stared.

"You think they need another hand?" She teased.

He quizzically looked at her. "You kidding me? You're not going out there."

"It's your last case before I go home. I just want to be useful." The tone was that of 'aw-shucks, come on, please?' But she would be denied.

"Between the fumes from the blast and the dust from the house, it's too risky. Besides you'll have plenty to see when we bring half the crime scene back to the lab." He then punched the down button on the elevator. "You excited about going to Montana?"

"Yeah, I'm excited to see my Mom. I want her to see me pregnant. You know, I mean it's got to be really cool to see your daughter pregnant."

"Mm-hmm." Was all he could come up with but he didn't agree at all. "If this is a girl, no guy's getting close enough to get her pregnant." He teased, but also gave a prize winning smile to her as the doors closed. She hoped the baby had his smile. It'd be a shame for his dimples not to be passed on to someone. She pictured a little girl with his smile then remembered her comment about seeing her own daughter pregnant and she wanted to take her words back. She pressed the down button and rode down to the morgue to see Sid.

**

Danny drove to the scene not thinking at all about fingerprints or evidence collection. The only things on his mind were his kid and whether or not his kid's mom was going to freak out when he sprung a wedding on her. Those thoughts were replaced by ones of loneliness. He was going to be spending the next month plus without her. No arms, no lips, none of that. Again his thoughts were replaced when he drove up on the scene and saw the destruction and chaos. The truck was thrown into park and his training took over.

**

The body of Miss Redman came into the morgue when Lindsay was sharing stories about Montana winters. Sid signed for the body and went into work mode. Lindsay walked over to the table where Sid started working and she tried to find a stance that was comfortable.

"So, how do you feel? It's your last day here, right?"

A nod of her head answered the last question before words tackled the first. "It feels pretty good." She replied with a hand on her back.

"I bet it does. No papers to grade, no dealing with demanding parents. A slice of pizza on the run between conferences." Sid listed all the things that he could remember her complaining about.

"Constipation, swelling in the feet, needing help getting up from the chair. Constant urination. You want switch?"

Without missing a beat Sid jumped in. "I already have all that, I just wanted to the time off." Leave it to Sid to one up a pregnant lady. She shook her head and rolled her eyes at him.

**

"Meet me for lunch?" His text asked.

"When, where"

"Wings place around the corner – 15 minutes."

"OMW." She collected what she had and left to meet him.

**

In the elevator after lunch, Lindsay leaned heavily on Danny and clung to him. Lunch was satisfying and filling and she needed a nap.

"Go home." He told her. "I'll pick you up for dinner after my shift."

"I haven't seen and told everyone good-bye yet." She was fading quickly and he did not know if she knew what she was saying. "Let's get everyone together for dinner tonight somewhere."

The floor couldn't have arrived at a better time. Her subject of conversation was forgotten. He got her to the couch in their old office and covered her the best he could with what he had. Information about the case flashed on the computer screen and he needed to check something in the AV lab. Making sure to stay as silent, he left the room, closing the door behind him and shut off the light. He hesitated and looked upon her sleeping form. The scene was observed by someone across the lab and the observer walked over to ease the younger man's worrisome thoughts.

"Lindsay will be back before you know it Danny."

"I asked her to marry me once already Mac. Did you know that? She told me no. Said that I was just askin' her because she was pregnant."

"Was she right?"

The question was blunt, but it needed to be asked and Danny needed to come up with an answer. "No, I mean I…I dunno Man…I love her. I do. I know that, but I just know myself and I don't wanna disappoint her or the kid."

Danny stood outside his office looking through the glass at the woman who could make or break his and his future. She was asleep immediately when her head hit the arm of the couch.

A firm hand came to rest on Danny's shoulder. "Those fears are normal Danny. I know that because I felt the same way with Claire. All those doubts about who you are and what you're capable of. I wasn't in a hurry to have children with Claire. I always felt that in the end I might disappoint her of myself." The sincerity in his voice was soothing but Danny couldn't imagine Mac Taylor having doubts about anything. It surprised him a little. "Now she's gone and it's something I'll always regret for the rest of my life." Danny's head hung at the idea of Mac not having children. He would have been a great father. The hand on Danny's shoulder applied a healthy squeeze. "God brought you and Lindsay together; I believe that. And you have been blessed with a gift, the greatest gift that life has to offer. You can choose to live in a place of fear or you can believe in the best version of yourself."

The words were strong and poignant. He never wanted to regret anything with Lindsay. He didn't want to miss a moment with her because he didn't do what his heart. They had come so far in the few years they had together and now she was carrying his baby. His unsteady hand touched the glass separating them. Mac nodded his head and walked off leaving Danny behind. He wanted to marry her now more than ever. He glanced at his watch and moved down the hall to finish his shift. The butterflies in his stomach were starting to take over and turning into giant birds.

**

Lindsay found Stella as she was coming out of an interrogation room. She was mumbling something in Greek and the tone of the words told her it was not about puppies and cupcakes. The tone and language changed when she saw Lindsay.

"Hey, did you have a nice nap?"

"Yeah, right. I come to see everyone and say goodbye and I end up sleeping half the afternoon away. Have you seen Danny?"

"No, I've been yelling at suspects all afternoon." She checked the time. "But he could still be around. Shift's not over yet."

"Yeah, I know, we're supposed to go and have dinner."

"He'll show himself soon. Look I need to finish up with this. I'll catch you later okay?"

Lindsay wanted to tell her that there wouldn't be a later, that she was leaving the next day but Stella was hurrying down the hall.

**

Lindsay went to see if Flack was at his desk and she found Danny sitting there also. They were talking in hushed words and Danny had his back to her.

"Lindsay, will you remind him that you are coming back and not moving out to Montana permanently." Flack called when he saw her.

She laughed at her boyfriend's concerns. He must have been sitting there the whole time moaning. "Danny, I'm moving back to Montana, never coming back and gonna raise cows for the rest of my life." Horror filled his eyes. "Poor baby, I'm kidding. I'll be back before you know it."

"Mac said the same thing." Danny breathed.

"You've bothered Mac with this too?" Flack ribbed.

"He found me in the hall watching Monroe sleep."

"Have you gotten anything done today?" Lindsay inquired.

"More than you may ever know." Flack inserted and Danny threw a death glare that Lindsay didn't understand.

"We need to head out." Danny looked at his watch.

"I'll see you guys later." Flack called out and again Danny stabbed him with a 'what-are-you-thinking' look as they walked away.

**

"We're early for dinner and Mac asked me to drop this off." Danny told her for the seventh time. "The courthouse is between the lab and the restaurant so it's not like we're really going out of our way or in the wrong direction. It will just take a few minutes." They mounted the steps at the front of the building. She looked at the envelope in Danny's hand. It wasn't that big, what could be so important? This was her last night in town; she didn't want to be running Mac's errands. They signed in and she followed him to an office where Danny handed over the envelope. Job done, now dinner…

"Ya know we still have time before our reservations." He looked at the floor directory and found something that he was looking for. "I want you to see a couple friends I have here before you take off. I talk a lot about you and I'm sure they would like to see you before you leave. I'm sure I'm gonna be talking a lot about you while you're gone."

Lindsay rolled her eyes and waved her hand for him to proceed. They snaked through the corridors, passing doors to offices and court rooms. It was becoming a never ending quest.

"Danny what the hell are we doing here? I'm leaving in the morning. I've got to finish packing." She pleaded. She wanted to eat and go home and spend the evening with him.

"You don't have to remind me that you're leaving. It's all I've been thinking about." He was still looking and not meeting her eyes.

"Then what are we doing here? Who are these friends I need to meet all of a sudden." She asked but he wasn't listening. He was too busy looking at room number and office names.

"I think, as, it's just around the corner here." He steered her with a hand low on her back and when the pressure from behind stopped she looked around to see where they were. Lindsay looked up at the name of the office where they came to a stop. Her face flushed with emotion.

"Danny?" She questioningly whispered in wonder and expectation.

"Look, I'm tired of being afraid, alright? You and me…we make sense okay?" His eyes brightened. Lindsay looked again at what the door said trying to grab a hold of what was really going on. "Wedding Ceremonies. Must have $25 Money Order." Lindsay turned her eye back to him. "You're everything I ever wanted. I wanna be with you." He held his breath waiting for her to tell him he was just afraid that she wasn't coming back. That she wasn't going to be there with him. He waited for her to tell him that he was silly for acting this way but the words never crossed her lips. "And I can be the guy that you want me to be. I know I can. I am that guy." Danny saturated each word with the fear and love and determination he was feeling.

She couldn't believe what he was saying. He was already everything that she needed him to be. No changes needed to be made. He didn't need to be that guy. He already was. "I know you are." She assured.

"Then let's walk through this door together." He saw her eyes dart back to the door and then back to him. "C'mon, let's do it. Let's take that leap."

* * *

_Isn't that an interesting place to stop the chapter? Wonder why?_


	75. Chapter 75

_WOW!!! Just read!_

It had only been forty seconds since she realized what was going on and where they were. In those forty second it was all laid out there for her. The confident man she fell in love with stood there with eyes full of both fear and hope. He stood there waiting for an answer to a proposition that took forty seconds to propose but might have taken longer to answer. He wanted her to take that leap with him, walk through that door and get married.

The pads of her fingertips slid across the soft skin at the base of his neck as she rose up on her toes to caress his lips with hers. She hoped the intimate gesture would make the fear in his eyes disappear.

It was simple and light and Danny couldn't tell if this was the kiss off before she turned and walked away or what…but the look on her face wasn't any comfort. There were worry wrinkles on her forehead and a blank look in her eyes.

To Lindsay, walking through that door, taking that leap, meant that everything in their past, those events that still made her hesitate or doubt what they had could no longer mean anything anymore. They could not be an excuse for her to run. Through that door stood a future, a change to start a new chapter in their story. A husband, family, children, home, new memories; all that was right through that door in front of her.

The worry lines disappeared and Danny saw the corners of her mouth turn up. It was the most relieving expression he ever saw and what he hoped for. Her eyes lifted to his and locked.

"You got that money order?"

It wasn't the outpouring of romantic poetry he was expecting, but it was still the best thing he could ever hear. The beating of his heart slowed some. The blood flashing in his veins eased. The hardest part of the day was over. He kissed her and held her as close as her body and their baby would allow. The rest of the day should be a piece of cake, but they needed to enter the office before it closed. He released her body and turned the know allowing her to enter first.

In front of them the door swung open and she came face to face with Stella and Mac. Danny closed the door as Lindsay hugged Mac and listened to his words of congratulations. Danny stole a quick hug from Stella. They exchanged places and Stella handed Lindsay a bouquet of flowers.

"What if I'd said no?"

"Not a chance." Stella told her.

Mac held out the small deep red box that Danny gave him the day before and Danny took it with a word of thanks. The four players too their places and the officiator asked for their money order.

The ceremony took no time and Lindsay looked down to see Danny slipping a gold band slowly onto her finger. The simple act was too much for her pregnant hormonal body to take and the first tears started to form. She had to concentrate to get through her part and get the ring on his finger. A sniff from Stella reminded them of their witnesses.

"I now pronounce you man and wife. Now kiss your wife before those two back there burst."

Another glance back behind them showed that Stella was wiping away tears with Mac's handkerchief that she must have gotten from him at some point. It was clenched then between her hands in front of her mouth holding in a squeal as she waited for the big kiss.

One half of the newly married couple was not about to disappoint. Lindsay's heart sang when his head turned back for the traditional kiss. The smug, confident, cocky, New Yorker she met years ago was back and standing therein front of her. He tugged the sleeves of his jacket a few inches; he rubbed his chin with the back of hand and widened the stance he had. He hadn't taken this long to kiss her the first time, but the warn out tired look he had when they were talking in the hall was gone and there was an evil twinkle in his eye. A step was taken closer. Her chin was captured between his thumb and finger and tiled up just slightly. Other fingers went into her hair and around the back of her head. Enough pressure was applied, sending her forward and her mouth made contact with his. There was no hesitation; there was no denying the fire on his end. It grew on her side and her mouth opened before a tongue could ask for entry. Her own hand felt for the back of his head and she took control of the kiss giving back twice as much as he was giving. A throat cleared and the flushed newlyweds pulled apart still resting foreheads together. "That's just a preview of things to come." He whispered loud enough for only her to hear. Danny's lips kept pecking at anything he could reach.

"Our work here is done and I promised Stella we'd stop for dinner on the way back." Mac signed the certificate along with Stella as witnesses and they excused themselves. Danny and Lindsay also signed the certificate. They left the office hand in hand.

"You ready for dinner?" He let go of her hand and an arm went around her shoulders.

"I'm ready to go home and see where that kiss could lead." She suggested.

"No matter what, you need to eat, and we can talk about that kiss later." He kissed the side of her face and kept walking.

They were half a block away from the diner, which was their destination when her feet stopped moving. All color left her face. "Oh my God, my parents." Hands covered her face. "What do I tell them about this when I get there tomorrow? Hi mom…Hi Dad…not only am I six months pregnant but I also got married yesterday without calling. No dress, no church, none of that. Who stood with me? My bosses, no other close friends where in attendance. This was not what she wanted for me; this is not what I wanted. What did I just do?"

He gave her the moment to have the nervous break down before speaking. "You done?" She peeked from under her fingers. "What? You went off to a stressful, scary place for a minute and I wanted to know if you were through?"

"How could you say that? How could you just let it slide off so easily?"

"When you get to your parents' house tomorrow they are going to be thrilled. Your mom will cry, your dad will hug you and it will be fine."

"How do you know?"

A single beckoned her to come closer. When they stood toe to toe he told her. "Because they already know. I called them last night or maybe this morning. I can't remember. The days are starting to get fuzzy."

Her mouth was on his and she pulled him by the belt loops until there was no space between them. He surrendered fully with everything. He wouldn't deny her anything if this was the thanks he got. Hands were frisky around his waist and rear. When cold hands slipped under the bottom of his shirt and down the back of his jeans he jolted back to the fact that he was still very much out on the street and in full public view. In her condition, he could not pull in to the closest alley and do what his brain was screaming for him to do.

Okay, dinner, its right um…up here, you know where we're going and as much as I would love to skip it and take you home and…" Eyes took in the sight in front of him. "Do unspeakable things to you, we have to eat. You need to eat, I'm gonna need my strength, and there are about twenty people there waiting for us sort of as a last minute reception slash farewell celebration. I set it up so it would be rude for me not to be there."

Excitement tore her apart. One side wanted to enjoy the party and the other wanted to enjoy him. "You have an hour and a half, then I'm going back to our apartment, stripping naked and getting in our bed. What I do after that will depend on whether you are there or not."

Whiplash should have been the result, but he drug her down the street to the front of the diner and to the waiting well wishers.

**

"So I guess my plan of getting naked and in bed didn't quite pan out."

He leaned forward enough for his bare chest to make contact with her back, chin resting on her shoulder. "I like how this turned out. I'd share a tub with you any time." Soft kisses peppered her shoulders and neck, hands smoothed down her arms.

"By the time I get back we won't both fit in here." She eased them both back to a comfortable resting position.

"When you get back we'll find other ways to be together."

She turned her head and dropped it to his shoulder and gave any skin she could reach sweet caresses.

The party wore her out. There was excessive amounts of standing, talking and laughing. Hugs, tears, and stories flowed freely. Emotions ran like a roller coaster. When Danny suggested a bath before bed and even offered to run the water she fell in love with him all over again. A trail of clothing went from the front door to the bathroom. She was mostly naked and caught him off guard when he emerged from the steamy room. She was his goddess. She was carrying his child. She was he wife. He ushered her to the warm water and quickly backed out of the room. The clothes trail was followed and he straightened everything up.

"Hey husband." She called voice thick with the sleepiness that should have overcome her a little while ago and he appeared at the door. "You gonna join me?"

"Boom!" Fast hands made the clothes disappear and fast feet moved him to the tub.

They sat comfortably now in the tub. Danny was sure that she was asleep. Her breathing was even. Her body was motionless. There was no way for him to get her out of the tub and to bed without waking her up. Plus his deep, deep, deep…deep inner romantic side just wanted to sit, hold her, and feel her body against him. Looking over her shoulder down at their baby growing made his heart swell. She shifted somewhat and rubbed him all the right places. The groan had to be halted and head turned to keep any sounds that escaped away from her ears.

Oh what was he going to do for the next five weeks while she was gone. It would be the longest time without female contact that he'd gone for a long time. It would be a lot of long lonely nights, lots of phones calls and heated conversations that left him aching for her touch. Her legs repositioned and the water rippled. Those legs wouldn't be wrapped around him or draped over him in the morning when he woke up. They wouldn't be resting in his lap after a long day wait for his hands to take away some of the pain.

Something stirred deep in the pit of his stomach and he needed to move a little. To move and chance waking her up or sit in agony? The chance was taken. A small peek over her shoulder to see if she was still asleep was dangerous and he fell into the trap. Instead of looking at her face he checked the rhythm of her breathing and eyes fell to the fullness of her breasts. Pregnancy changed her body's shape and he was extremely pleased. He enjoyed the changes and often found himself indulging in the reactions they provoked. His hands itched to roam up her sides and down the sides of her breasts. He wanted to see her writhe in pleasure under the work of his hand. The thought again stoked the fire building inside. It was becoming very uncomfortable because she was scooted back so far against him, he didn't have any wiggle room and presently he needed some. The small adjustments were tried again but nothing helped. He was hurtin' and it was all brought on by the woman in his arms and she did nothing. Oh how he wanted her laid out with him in their bed helping him with his growing problem.

"Quit movin' around back there. It was so nice and peaceful just to sit in silence. We won't get mush of that soon. Then you have to go and start moving around." She adjusted and slipped up to him and the moan could not be stopped before it came out this time.

"Linds, you need to stop moving." She experimentally moved along him again and he could hardly stand the pleasure. Her hands went to what she could reach on his upper thighs and teased.

"Why? I just need to move a little bit. I sat in that position a little too long." Knowing exactly what she was doing she brushed him again. "The water is getting a little chilly. Should I pull the plug or add more hot water?" The body in front of him leaned forward to pull the plug or turn on the faucet. He couldn't give an answer. He was following her spine down to her perfect rear and saw and felt what the sight of her naked body did to him.

"Pull the plug, we're getting in bed."

"But I'm not sleepy." A look was thrown over her shoulder and back at him.

"I said nothing about sleep did I?" He was out of the tub with a towel around his waist and another in hand ready to help dry her off. The procedure was precise: down the arms, up the side of the torso quickly brushing the breasts that he couldn't resist, across the collarbone, breasts, stomach, around to her back, down one leg, lightly brushing against the most sensitive areas softly, back up the other leg and spending more time in places that needed special attention. It was done right and a low rattle from her chest was proof.

She was dry but not ready to get into bed. The towel about his hips was commandeered and it worked the wetness from his back, arms, chest and stomach by her hands. She dared her to go further with a look and she dropped in front of him to work on his legs. Breath was held not knowing what was next. Delicate touches from the towel made him dry and overheated. She stood up and looped the towel around his neck.

"You ready to get in bed with me and not sleep?"

There was no trust in words. A head nod was all he gave.

"Good, because I'm going to be loved properly by my husband tonight." She swiped a finger down the middle of his chest, slowly around his belly button and further. He saw the hunger. "And its gonna have to be something to keep me warm all those night alone in Montana. I hope you're…" Her eyes looked back down again. "Up for it." This time her hand was low across his hips when she passed him and left the small room. The pressure from inside was killing him.

The breath was released.

He'd give her something to hold on to during the cold nights. He'd work all night if he had to…not that he minded.

* * *

_Is it wrong that this chapter was dreamed about long before it was written down. Wow and then to actually see it in my brain as I wrote it down. _

_So next she leaves and he is left alone and she is alone and what are they going to do with all that time on their hands? What happened that we didn't see on the show. How did she really stay warm those long nights?_


	76. Chapter 76

"Saying goodbye, going away, seems like goodbye's such a hard thing to say. Touching a hand, wondering why, it's time for saying goodbye."

She sang, he listened. He didn't think she knew that she was singing. He had no idea what the song was, who sung it, or anything…but it wasn't the most happy sounding tune to be singing an hour before she left.

"Saying goodbye, why is it sad? Makes us remember the good times we had. Much more to say, foolish to try. It's time for saying goodbye."

They woke with the alarm and he made love to his wife. They showered and went about their normal morning routine but that was the only normal thing that happened that morning. They were going to head out in different directions at the same time, her for the airport, he for the lab. In the bathroom she was singing to herself and packing toiletries.

"Somehow I know we'll meet again, not sure quite where and I don't know just when. You're in my heart so until then…wanna smile, wanna cry, sayin' goodbye."

She sang the short song over and over. She moved from room to room finalizing the items in her luggage. Danny help carry the bags out to the waiting cab and filled the trunk. She hummed and bounced on the balls of her feet trying to stay warm. The short melody ended when their lips met for their final kiss for a while. No one battled for control of dominance. It went from sweet to sensual, excited to sad. Neither wanted to pull away first but when the taxi driver honked his norn it was time to go. She hugged him one more time and the tune started again.

**

"Did you know that a song or tune that gets stuck in your head is called an 'ear worm'?"

"Excuse me?" Danny questioned Hawkes. They'd been working in the small layout room on their latest case.

"A tune or song that you can't get out of your head and you keep singing it over and over, it's called an 'ear worm.'" He stated again slower and clearer.

"Okay, thanks for sharing." Danny sounded as sarcastic as he could and never looked up from the table.

"I only mention it because you have been humming the same thing for the last forty minutes."

"Sorry doc, I didn't ever notice." Danny went back to the clothing he was pulling particulates from. "I have no idea what I am even singing. I am sure it's the same song that Lindsay was singing while she was packing this morning."

"She get off okay this morning? What time was her flight?"

"Flight was at 10:20." Danny checked his watch. "She'll be there before seven tonight. She said she'd call when she landed."

"Congratulations again on getting married."

"Thanks Hawkes."

**

"No way man, I have a date with an angel tonight."

"I can't authorize overtime just so you have something to do."

"I'm not playing tonight, I won't be there."

"Already have plans, sorry."

They were the responses he got when the shift ended. He asked Flack, Stella, Mac and Hawkes if they had any kind of plans or something for him to do and each time he was shot down. Everyone else had plans and that left him with no options. He would have to go home to the empty apartment, the place that he was trying to stay out of as long as he could. The closet was half empty, there were no girly products surrounding the sink in the bathroom, her favorite CDs and movies were gone. The apartment was an empty shell of what it was when he left earlier that morning for his shift.

He headed out of the office, something he dreaded all day and no one gave him any reason to hang around the lab. He'd have to do it eventually; he'd have to go home. He shut down the computer, turned off the small desk lamp, pushed the chair in and put on his jacket. Quiet goodnights were exchanged between him and anyone he passed. He sent up a prayer as he went by each person for them to need his help. No such luck.

The street was noisy. It added to busy thoughts. The collar on his coat was flipped up to shield him from the cold. The phone palmed in his hand vibrated.

"You better be on your way home, cowboy." He chuckled at her knowledge of him. Another message came in. "Call me when you get home and not a moment before." There was a sudden change in his heart. Thank goodness all his requests for some sort of distraction were turned down. It would have been extremely rude to anyone who said yes to him, that he would have bolted from whatever he was doing to get home to make the phone call the Lindsay. The train could not arrive at the platform fast enough, the traffic lights were against him when he wanted to cross the street. His key didn't want to behave when he reached the door.

**

Her phone rang as she sat in the window seat. The sun was setting over the flat horizon and she missed the tall buildings already. Danny's goofy face showed on her phone announcing him as the caller.

"Hey cowboy." She cooed into the phone.

"Hey Montana."

"How was work today?"

"The usual. A little longer than most because I put my wife in a cab this morning to Montana for the next five weeks."

"Must have been rough on you."

"It was."

"You better now?"

"With you on the phone, I'm doing better." He relaxed against the headboard of their bed, held her pillow to his chest and started a daily ritual of spending his fading moments of the day talking to Lindsay.

**

When they talked those first few days she would talk about how wonderful it was to have her mom take care of every little thing from making her bed to washing dishes to doing her laundry. He told her she could do all his when she got back just to help make up for lost time and get her back into the routine. She told him not to do her any favors.

The fourth night they talked, he barely got out his greeting before she interrupted: "Tell me who died, how the scene looked, who processed what and if you caught the bad guy." She was frantic and her words were rushed.

He looked at the phone curiously. "You alright Montana?"

"I'm bored. Mom thinks sitting at the dining room table doing jigsaw puzzles is too strenuous. I can tell you every inch of this ranch because I have walked the whole thing tediously. I had to be properly bundled up to my ears and checked by my mother just to do so, but it's the only escape I have had. She made me wear three pairs of gloves to go out to the barn and get my father for dinner. I'm losing it out here. I wish I brought my field kit?"

"Um…I'm afraid to ask, but why do you wish you had your old kit?"

"I found a dead beaver by the creek, for a passing moment I wanted to tape off the area and process just to have something to do. It would have wasted a few minutes."

He chuckled at the thought and the image of her standing over the body of a dead beaver, pregnant in the snow with the yellow taped looped around a few trees to isolate off the area to any passerby.

"It can't be that bad." He told her.

"I just about hopped on a plane today and came home. The only thing that stopped me was that most of my clothes were in the laundry. By the way, watch for this month's Discover bill. I had to buy bigger clothes again and I think the card moaned the last time I used it. I've also been invited to join Shamu's family with the size I've become."

"Linds, you're pregnant."

"I know, but still…"

"Still nothing, Elmer is growing inside you."

She laughed. "There is no way I'm calling this child Elmer. Now tell me about your day."

**

It was only two days later when…

"Call Danny."

"Talk to your husband. He needs to hear from you." Flack sent her a while later.

Then Mac called. She didn't pleasantly greet him. "Mac what happened to Danny today?"

"He followed a suspect into a construction site and was involved in a shoot out."

"Did he get the guy?"

"Yes, yes he did."

"Then why am I getting texts and phone calls from everyone telling me to talk to him?"

"He was told to wait outside while Flack and I questioned a suspect that was listed as arm and dangerous. He didn't have his vest with him so I wouldn't approve of him participating. The suspect ran out of his place of business and into an adjacent building under construction. Danny saw him exit and followed him. They shot at each other before Danny got off a good shot and hit him. Once the suspect was taken care of, Danny walked us back through what happened and we noticed the metal cabinet he was hiding behind. There were impact dents from the suspect's gun. If they were two inches closer together then he would not be here right now. The realization hit him and he hasn't been thinking straight all day. He disregarded orders from a superior when he chased the guy down and I could write him up for that. He was not thinking like a new husband with a baby on the way."

"Why are you calling Mac, he's done stupid things before. He's not listened before. You've talked to him and he fixed his behavior. What's different this time?"

"You and the baby. Before he messed up it didn't includes violent gun battles and he wasn't about to be a father."

Lindsay let the words take full effect. "I've talked to him every night since I left, plus I called earlier this afternoon. He sounded alright."

"Talk to him Lindsay. We just closed the case and an arrest was made. I'm sending him home a little early today. Talk to him." Lindsay could tell that there was something that Mac was not telling her.

"Thank you Mac."

**

She wanted privacy and the loft would provide what she needed. Her mother sent her out in at least three layers. She found the old blankets and quilts that were stored in one of the cabinets and cocooned herself into them while sitting against the warm hay bales in one of the corners. Her father must have installed some sort of little heater in the barn in the fall, it was nice and toasty and she was ready for the conversation that was to come. The small clock on her phone's screen showed that Danny should be home. She dialed the familiar number button by button instead of going by speed dial. Too many rings went by and she was afraid he was going to let it go to voice mail after the day he had. Instead, at the last moment she heard him answer. She could hear fabric rustling.

"'Lo?"

"What are you wearing?" It was smooth and it was silky and meant to put him at ease before they got into the heavy stuff.

"Excuse me?" He could tell who it was, but had no clue why she would ask him this.

"What are you wearing?"

"I just walked in the door and took off my jacket…wait, how did you know I'd be home already?"

His question was ignored. "Take everything off and get under the covers."

On any other day he would have been extremely turned on about what her words proposed. "Linds…"

"Don't "Linds" me. Take your clothes off and get in bed."

"Fine." She listened carefully and heard more fabric and a few choice words as he hopped around trying to get his clothes off. It got very quiet and then a metallic zipper could he heard. There go the jeans. He was sliding into bed when the phone was picked up. "Okay, now what? You have me here in bed in nothing but my underwear and wishing that you were with me. What are you wearing?"

"I'm in the barn wrapped in layer of heavy jackets and lots of blankets." He shivered at how cold it must be there and he wanted his clothes back on.

"If you didn't call for a little lovin' over the phone then why did you call and get me undressed and in bed?"

"You are going to tell me what happened today." There was a calm directness in her voice that told him there was no getting out of talking.

"Typical day."

"Oh, really, then tell me why I'm not gone for a week and I get two texts and a phone call letting me know that you had a big day and that I was to talk to you about it."

He pulled his hand down the length of his face and tried to figure a way out of the conundrum that he was in. He had to know what she knew. He needed to know who told her what about today. Idly he played with the band around his finger. "Why did you asked me to get undressed and in bed?"

"I wanted to make sure that I had your complete attention."

"You got it."

"What happened today? Why did I get a text from Flack and Stella to check up on you then a phone call from your boss?"

It was worse than he thought. "Mac called you?"

"Yeah hun, he did."

Danny sighed a great big sigh and pulled at the bridge of his nose. He set the glasses on the bed side table and snuggled into the bed for what could be a long conversation. The disappearing smell that was uniquely Lindsay puffed up from the comforter, sheets, and her pillow. Her conditioner, shampoo, lotion, and perfume mixed to create his favorite scent. Since her departure he spent a lot of time in their bed surrounded by her essence. Each day it faded a bit in her absence. Each day a little of her was lost to the atmosphere of the apartment.

Danny you still there?"

"Yeah, just gathering my thoughts." Here it goes, he thought. "Do you remember Marty Pino?"

**

Lindsay listened patiently to the whole story about what happened. She wanted to be in New York to help him deal with all the emotions that he was feeling from the shooting to the arrest. The case had twisted emotions in all of her friends' lives and it was hard to see how this case would ever leave any of them the same. Trusts had been broken, they all faltered at what they thought and believed. Lots of questions but not too many believable answers.

He was exhausted. The day had taken a lot from him. Words slurred and oozed from him as sleep started to take over. Lindsay started talking about her day and how things had gone. There was really no important information included in what she was saying, it was just something for him to listen to as he faded into lullaby land.

When she had heard nothing from him for about ten minutes, she closed her phone and emerged from her cocoon and went back into the house. Her family would be waiting for dinner and she could talk out what happened with her parents. She would fall asleep that night heavy with thoughts and hoped that in the coming days and conversations that Danny would start to see what happened and how it changed their lives. It was that case that they needed. Something happened between a man and his wife in New York. Choices were made by one that altered the lives of both. Danny made a choice that day that could have altered the lives of so many.

* * *

Yeah, so I was putting away Christmas stuff tonight and I realized that I edited a chapter today at school and needed to publish it, so here it is. Um, have felt little outside motivation to keep working on this. I hope people are still out there.

Note: The chapter of Swan Song that will be published before midnight tomorrow night will hopefully set the stage for the rest of the story. Watch for it or if you haven't checked it out yet please do.


	77. Chapter 77

Lindsay was excited, she was nervous, she was anxious. Six minutes ago she received a text message telling her that she had ten minutes to get her coat and purse and get out on the front porch. The sender of the message was unknown and they would not respond to any inquiries. No thought was ever given to who could be the sender again. She wanted out of that house and a few minutes of freedom.

She read the text over and over for the first two minutes of her ten and pondered what she was going to do. The next minute was spent trying to figure out where her parents were in the house and how she was going to get past them. She was going to have to be sneaky. Her mother became more and more paranoid about germs and sickness and almost put Lindsay in a bubble to keep her healthy. She didn't understand it. Her brother's had children and their wives never said anything about their mother acting this way.

She plastered her body against the wall eased down the stairs and to the coat closet. It took all she had not to tear the door off the hinges, rip her jacket from the hanger and run to the front door to meet this mystery person. Stop, take a deep breath. Instead of the rip and tear method, all the stealthy moves that she learned in the police academy all those years ago kicked in and she prepared herself for the elements by donning her hat, scarf, coat, and at least two pairs of gloves with little or no sound.

Four minutes, she had four minutes to make it seven feet down the hall and out the door without being noticed. A mental plan was made: go around the small table against the wall, pass the umbrella stand without knocking it over, and then out the door. She eyeballed the situation and saw that the door was not locked. Her mother must have left it unlocked when she came back from getting the mail. She'd have to have a talk with her about safety…then remembered that they were not in New York. The door being unlocked was one less thing that she had to deal with.

Three minutes. Did she make a dash for it and hit every creaky board in the floor or did she take it easy and careful? The television in the living room erupted. Her father was watching some basketball game. She listened and waited for the replay and made a run for it when the crowd cheered again. Her hand went around the knob and her wrist twisted.

Nothing happened.

There were too many layers, she could not get enough of a grip on the door and it wouldn't open. Freedom was right there. It was just out there on the other side of the door. It was there she could see it through the door and time was running out. This was the most excitement and fun she'd had since her arrival and it was about to come to a quick end.

A throat cleared behind her – BUSTED!

Lindsay's head fell as she turned and came face to face with her father. He reached around to the door, assumedly to lock it, but he opened it instead.

"Your sister-in law has driven by twice. I'd guess that she's here for you. You better get out there."

Movement could be heard from above; her mother was up and about. Lindsay kissed her father and ran out the door. Her sister-in-law's minivan slowed and she didn't wait for it to stop before she opened the door and they sped off.

Jennifer looked at Lindsay's flushed face. Her eyes were wide and she was out of breath. Lindsay had this growing feeling of victory inside and there was really no good reason why.

"Let's get out of here."

**

Twenty minutes later the car came to a stop at a light. "This? This is the big secret destination?" The light turned and so did the car. They found the closest spot to the front door. "You do know that we have baby stores in New York right?" The huge 'Babies R Us' stood in front of them.

"I know you do, but you needed to get out of the house. Have you started a gift registry yet?" The double doors opened automatically for them.

"It's hard to make a list of what we need to when we don't even know if it's a boy or girl. Each scan has been botched one way or another." They stopped at the customer service counter for a scanner and to fill out the paperwork.

"You know old Doc Petree would give you and ultrasound any time you asked." Jennifer commented as the fun began.

**

"Please tell me you don't actually need all this." Lindsay flipped through page after page of suggested items. "Wipe warmer…diaper genie…antigas bottles? I want a list of what my mom used and that is good enough for me." Lindsay declared.

"You know that most of the chemicals that they used in those products have been banned or updated…safety regulations have also been changed and most of that stuff has been deemed unsafe." She snatched the list from Lindsay and looked it over. "Don't worry. The basics are what we need to register for, plus a few fun things. All the frivolous stuff will come whether you register for it or not. Then there are the hand-me-downs that you will get from the family members who are already done with them. And I guarantee you won't get a wipe warmer." Jennifer knew that there was already a huge box of stuff waiting for Lindsay when she got home that she sent a while back.

**

Her feet hurt, her back hurt. She was leaning over and pushing the cart like it was a walker. There were things in the cart that she didn't know how they got there. Jennifer was frustrated because they didn't know the sex of the baby and there were so many cute things to choose from. The registry was full and they turned the scanner back in an hour ago. They were just roaming around and looking. Lindsay looked at her watch.

"We need to get back. I have a check-up first thing this afternoon."

"Ohhh, you're right, we need to check out and get some lunch. I am you chauffer to that too."

They made it to the checkout lane and Lindsay was ready to look at everything and start putting stuff back on the shelves that were whimsical impulse grabs but Jennifer loaded the counter up and the cashier just started scanning and bagging. Before Lindsay could seriously protest, everything was scanned and Jennifer pulled a card from her purse and paid for the lot. Lindsay wanted to say something, but the death glare that was sent her way shut her up quickly.

**

Jennifer also paid for lunch.

"What was that about, why did you pay for everything?"

"Consider it a gift."

"You don't have to do…"

Jennifer interrupted. "It wasn't me. Your dad told me that I had to get you out of the house and he gave me his card."

"Wow!"

"Yeah, but don't get too excited, you're about to be poked and prodded by someone who has been deemed a trained professional. Finish up, we need to get moving."

**

"_You know old Doc Petree would give you and ultrasound any time you asked." _

The words rolled around in her head while she was waiting for the nurse to call her back. The words rolled around while she was being weighed. She actually asked the doctor if they had some time in the future when she could make an appointment for an ultrasound for the purpose of finding out the sex of the baby. She never imagined that it would happen that day, that instant. She was whisked out of the exam room into the room set up for the scan.

She didn't have time to tell Danny that she was doing it, Jennifer in the waiting room didn't even know. Within ten minutes, a technician was in the room, the jelly was once again being applied to her belly, and the screen came to life with images of her baby squirming around.

She knew enough about x-rays and anatomy to know that these pictures were clear enough to show or not show what they needed to show. There was no protruding extra appendage to show that it would have been a boy.

"A little girl…" She sighed.

"Yes, that's right, you're having a little girl. Congratulations."

**

She told no one. Jennifer asked what took her so long and Lindsay shrugged it off. The printout of the ultrasound pictures were safely and secretly tucked away at the bottom of her purse where no one would think to look or get a glance at them.

She knew she was having a girl. Pink was going to have to dominate her life for a while. The knowledge was held in her heart. She needed her little girl's daddy to know before anyone else. There was no way she could make a phone call to let him know. A text would mean an immediate phone call back from him.

A little girl, it was hard to believe. It made the arrival of their baby more real, more tangible. With the announcement of the sex it changed everything. There would be little pink blanket and clothes in her drawers in her room. There would be toys and bottles scattered from one end of the apartment to the other. The due date and arrival seemed closer than ever and she was anxious as ever.

A little girl with Danny's eyes filled her future fantasies of family life. Walks in the park, crawling in the grass and chasing butterflies. Her thoughts lulled her into the sleep of a nap and she was out for an hour dreaming of what was to come.

When she woke up, she sent Danny a text: "Went to doc for checkup. Everything fine. Doc says I look good and that your daughter looks good on the ultrasound pictures."

She could imagine the reaction. Heaven help anyone who was standing around him when he read the message. She hit send and went down to the kitchen for a snack.

**

Stella and Mac joined the small gathering in the break room. Hearing laughter and seeing it directed at Danny gave them the clue that baby names were still being thrown around.

"Why not throw 'Mac' into the mix?" Stella offered.

"Yeah." Adam scoffed and shocked eyes turned to stare at him. Danny's phone vibrated, he looked at it under the table. Adam tried to dig himself out of the hole he'd dug himself into. "Yeah, it's a great name. I…I like your name." He was trying so hard.

"Mac's no good." The shocked faces turned from Adam to Danny and the phone in his hand. "That was Lindsay…she's fine." He could hardly believe he was about to say the next words out loud. "And so is the little girl in her belly."

No sooner had the words slipped from his lips, than he was swarmed with well wishers and congratulations. Others were there to give him a hard time about all the boys' names he was going through. That notebook would have to go in the trash and another one started.

**

"That wasn't fair." He teased when she answered on the first ring. "We were sitting and discussing names when your text came in and completely spooked me."

"I guess I should have waited a little longer to tell you."

"A little longer!!! How long have you known?" He almost came off the couch.

"Just since early this afternoon. I came home and fell asleep."

"Who all knows on your end?" He asked.

"Just me and the lady who did the ultrasound."

"Well, the lab knows. I'll call and tell mom and dad in a little while. Thank you for telling me first. What else did you do today?" As if anything else in the world could top that news…

**

Visiting hours were over. He had to use his badge and puppy eyes with the nurses to get into Louie's room. The plastic chair scraped across the floor before coming to rest next to the bed. The tired man fell into it and was silent at first.

"Louie…I'm having a little baby girl. I'm married and I'm having a little girl." Saying that much out loud to the empty room was hard enough. "At least with a boy I could fake it and be tough even when it was small, but a girl, something that small and gentle and a girl." His phone vibrated again and Lindsay sent another text with a photo attached. It was the ultrasound picture with an arrow pointing to the area showing it was a girl. He looked at the photo. "There she is. Isn't she beautiful?" He whispered to himself.

**

He was going to be late for work so the first call he made was to Mac. He fell asleep in Louie's room and the commute would be longer than normal.

The next call was to his mom. In the back seat of the cab he dialed the number, watched the buildings pass and waited for someone to pick up. It wouldn't be a long wait.

"Hello?"

"Ma."

"Danny, it's early for you. Shouldn't you be at work already?"

"I'm on my way, got a late start, that's all."

"Everything okay?"

"Oh, yeah, great. I wanted to tell you that Lindsay called last night and gave me some news about the baby." He was sure the statement would bring about worry, but the tiredness in his voice brought more of a panic than worry.

"Are they okay? When is she coming back?"

"They won't be back for a few more weeks, but she told me that we are having a little girl."

The shriek that came out of his phone could probably be heard all the way out in Montana. The cab driver checked the rear view mirror to make sure that his passenger was alright.

"A little girl, it's been so long since anyone in this family has a little girl. How's Lindsay?"

"She's good. Bored out of her mind, but good."

"Oh! Pink. I need to go out and buy something pink. Tell Lindsay that we love her and to come home soon."

"You got it ma." In the background before he hung up and the line disconnected he could hear her hollering something to his father about babies, pink and little girls. The last words that came through faintly were: "Where's the credit card?"

* * *

_Wow updated both stories in the same day. Let me know, your kinds words had propelled this to what it is and continue to make me want to write. Thank you. You know what is coming up in the show next...so keep an eye out._

_Review, review, review._


	78. Chapter 78

_Shorter chapter lots to say. _

* * *

A month. Their baby daughter grew and developed for another month. Danny spent the month working hard, prepping for Lindsay's return, and staying busy. Lindsay spent the month lounging and planning. Her departure for home was within the week and both parties were looking forward to that. She didn't want to seem too eager to leave, but the packing proccess had already begun. There was so much more to take home than she came out there with.

**

Danny knocked the snow from his boots on the hard surface under his feet. He was dealing with unusually cold winter weather. The wind whipped around him and up the bottom of his jacket…he should have warn his heavier coat that day. He got the sinking sensation that he would be dealing with the chill deep in his bones long after finding destination. With a few spare minutes, he took out his phone and made a rare mid morning phone call to his wife.

"Hello?"

It was such a sweet sound to his ears. "Hey babe."

"What are you doing? You never call this early."

"Had a few minutes, thought I'd call to hear your voice." The wind blew again and he used his empty hand to pull the coat around him tighter around his shoulders and chest. "So you'll be back home in a few days."

"Yeah, I told you that yesterday."

So much had happened since that phone call. He assaulted a suspect while questioning him. Mac was not happy. Hawkes was already on his way out of town for a funeral and Danny's suspension meant that Mac was down two detectives. There'd be a lot of questions to answer in a few minutes. "Yeah, you did. So um…Mac gave me the day off. What should I do with it?"

"Why did Mac give you the day off?" She folded a few more of the new baby outfits and placed them in the extra suitcase that it would take to get some the stuff home. So far her voice was light, conversational, no suspicions.

"Difference of opinions with a suspect. Actually I got myself a few days off because of it."

"Why do I have a feeling I'm not going to like this?"

"Because you know me so well." The conversation needed to end. He needed to get inside before he froze, but it would be rude to walk into the house talking on the phone. "So with my time off, I was going to work on the baby's room. Then I realized that you have most of the new stuff at your parents' house."

"It will come home with me in a few days. Then we can use you're days off to work on the baby's room until you go back. You'll need the truck when you pick me up at the airport."

He rubbed his chin with a gloved hand. "Um, yeah, about that…I won't be picking you up."

She stood straight at the words and threw a hand in the air. "What? I mean I've been away for a while and it would be nice to see you as soon as I get into town. You now have the day off, what could you possibly be doing instead?"

The cold was getting to him. "Making sure you get home on the airplane okay. It's freezing out here. Surprise. Now come let me in." It was said with no enthusiasm, just the desperation of a man slowly freezing to death on the front porch. The flat, wide open landscape allowed the wind to blow with nothing in its way to slow it down. No tall buildings for it to weave around, no people walking on the street to diffuse the intensity or hide behind.

"What?"

"Montana, I'm on the front porch. Come let me in."

The line went dead.

He could hear her come down the steps and unlock the front door. Then his arms were full. A deep sigh was released in total contentment on her part. It was a little warmer when her body shared its heat with him but not enough. "As fabulous as it is, holding you again, can we have this little reunion inside?"

For the first time in over thirty days she took a really good look at him and aw how cold he was. Teeth were starting to chatter, body was shaking due to shivering, and there was a slight tinge of blue around his lips. Bright red coloring shown on his cheeks making him look like one of Santa's helpers. "Oh, sorry." She ushered him through the door where he was met with a blast of warm air and a welcome relief. Lindsay gave him just enough time to make all the cold weather clothing disappear before she took her place again him. Right away he noticed how pregnant she was.

"Um, Linds, there seems to be a small foreign car parked between us."

"Danny, I would like to introduce you to your daughter. And spending time with her in the last thirty days, I can definitely tell you that she is your daughter. She keeps the same hours, likes the same food, loves the roar of an engine. She is definitely your daughter."

"Wait, you telling me you been out riding around on a motorcycle in this weather in your condition?"

"No, just been hanging around my brothers when they start up the snow mobiles and rev the engines. This one rolls over and has a party."

She went on to talk but it came out like in the Peanuts cartoons when adults talk. Lindsay stopped when he went down onto his knees. With the delicate touch that she had only seen him use with evidence, he explored the roundness of her belly. Very carefully he felt around and waited for the tremor under his fingers that might show signs of a kick, but got nothing.

"Baby girl, your daddy is waiting for you to say "hi."" Lindsay cooed.

The words left her lips and there was movement. Danny could feel as she stretched and moved inside. Knots formed under his hands.

"I think her head is up here and that's either a knee or foot up under my ribs." Hands maneuvered hands to show him how she was laying in her tummy.

It was amazing. There was a head and knee (or foot) on the other side of the protective barrier that was her body. And that if there was a head and knee (or foot) that there must be a nose, fingers, elbows, toes, ears, and all those other tiny parts. And not only that but those parts were moving and it was a person.

"Hello my baby girl. I have missing you and your mama. It's Daddy. I'm here." More touches, more whispered words, more time spent with is daughter. "I need to leave you for a minute and say hi to your mother." He was back on his feet and captured her lips like a dying man looking for water. Love flowed between them. A month plus passed since he was able to drink from those lips, a month since he held her in his arms. He had time to make up for.

"Lindsay, who was at the…?" Mama Monroe saw her wrapped up in someone but didn't see who. "Child, what are you doing? You're married." The two broke apart, disappointed with the intrusion. Mama saw. "Oh, thank goodness, it's you Danny." She turned back to the kitchen, but came all the way around instead to face them again and stop another kiss that was about to start. "Mr. Messer, what are you doing on this side of the country?"

Eyes didn't leave eyes. Endearing gazed passed between them. "I had some unexpected time off and thought I'd use it to come help get Lindsay and all the new stuff home."

Mama went back down the hall and left the two standing barely inside the front door making out like teenagers.

**

If she thought that her mother's pampering and strict eye on her were annoying then Danny fell into the category of parole officer when it came to her movements. She would get up to get a glass of water or go to the bathroom and he would be two steps behind her. The small things her mother finally let up about, Danny was a stickler for. And it all came to a head two mornings before they left for New York.

She was awake. He was still asleep.

Lindsay wanted to sneak away and out to the barn for a moment with Stranger before the day started. She was fully dressed minus one sock. It was on the floor, just out of reach. She leaned forward to get the object and like the other couple dozen times braced herself so that she could reach what she wanted to get. Danny felt the movement of the bed and bolted awake and saw what he thought was the sight of her falling off the bed. Without any kind of warning what so ever, he got up and threw her off balance, making her fall forward even more. He caught her and grabbed the piece of clothing that started all of this. He was down at her feet and almost had the sock on her foot when she exploded.

"Stop. Right. There." She scolded the crouching man on the floor in front of her. "If you had not moved off the bed I would not have tipped. You have followed and stepped on my heels ever since you got here and now this." The commotion brought her mother into the room where she stood at the door. Lindsay was talking to Danny but wanted her mother to hear every word loud and clear. "I am not made of glass. I am not going to break. I don't need a baby sitter or a shadow. I am just pregnant. I'm not the first women to find myself in this condition. I won't be the last. If you don't back off I'm going to spend the next two night out in the barn and then move in with Stella or Mac when we get back home." Eyeballs went back and forth to her mother and her husband. "Do you understand me?" He was afraid to answer. Her mother just had a blank stare. "Good, I'll be out in the barn ALONE if you need me." She stomped from the room. Mama Monroe stared at Danny in his boxers crouching on the floor. He shrugged his shoulders and she left the room to start her own day.

* * *

_It dawned on me again how this is something that just might be going on as long as the show it on, so I have picked a definite stopping place. This is not it, but the different beginning is over and now its just about how their life is different. You might not see it coming, but the end has started._


	79. Chapter 79

_This is a really short chapter but it gets to the point of an event and to go on would spoil things for the next chapter._

* * *

After a long time away from her own comfy, soft, familiar bed there was nothing she wanted to do more than crawl into it with her husband after their long day of travel. She wanted to feel the sheets against her skin, hold her pillow to her face and breathe in the scent of their fabric softner and detergent. She wanted every that was hers within reach without worrying about if it would be there or not. Most of all she wanted to be in bed with her husband where she could kiss him for as long as she wanted without being interrupted by her parents and feeling like a teenager. It wasn't her fault that every time she saw Danny her hormones kicked in and she wanted to do was eat him alive or get him naked in bed with her.

The seatbelt sign blinked on above her head and the cabin pressure changed while the plane started its descent. Lindsay almost stood up and cheered. She wanted to be off that plane. The seats were not very comfortable to sit in to begin with, but being eight and a half months pregnant they were even worse. She needed space and the plane did not give her that luxury.

The plane landed and the passengers deplaned. Danny found a row of chairs near the baggage carousel and put Lindsay there while he watched bags from their flight go round and round. He pulled bags from the belt as they went by and glanced back at Lindsay to check on her. One time he gave her a little wave and a smile to go with it. She blushed at his attention. He went back to finding their bags.

They stacked higher and higher in front of her. The suitcase and carry-on that she went out with turned into five suitcases on the return trip. He sat down in the chair next to her and missed the confusing look that she gave him.

"What are you doing? I'm ready to head home."

"Stella is stuck in traffic. She, Mac and Hawkes are each heading this way with a truck. The race is on to see who gets here first."

"You wanna put some money down on who that is?" She asked trying to make the time pass quicker.

"No way. I learned a long time ago not to bet against you."

A shy smile fell on her lips and she pushed her hands into his. The people rushed around them to catch a flight or a cab and she missed all of it. "I like that. We've got a history. Not a long one, but it's something." One hand squeezed the other and emotions were about to push her over the edge.

"Hey you two, someone call for a ride?" Mac stood in front of them looking so proud of himself that he was the first to show up. His arrival broke the hold that Lindsay's emotions had over her. Danny and Mac loaded themselves up with the bags and suitcases and the old of the two led them out to where the truck was parked.

She stood back and watched and waited. She didn't notice Mac approach until she was encircled in a hug from her former boss. "Look at you." He pulled her close again. "I'm so glad you're back. He's becoming too hard to handle on my own." They both laughed and backed away from each other. Danny seemed to miss the whole exchange. Buckled in and ready to go, Mac pulled out into traffic.

**

Easing into bed was a whole lot better that she imagined on the plane. The sheets felt better. Her pillow was softer and the warm body beside her made her skin hum. Of course it was already hyper sensitive from the hot shower she took and from the man's touch who joined her in that shower.

He came right in without invitation and relearned the curves of her body. His exploration was tedious and paced. He took the soap filled wash cloth from her and helped wash the travel stress out of her body. Heat from his hands could be felt through the thin fabric as he worked. She braced herself on the tile wall for support because she couldn't trust her balance. Soon the wash cloth was dropped and his bare hands touched her intimately. His body pressed against hers and the water ran cold before they emerged from under the spray.

Big fluffy towels shielded them from any winter drafts that might have snuck in, but the terry cloth hit the floor before they got into bed and moved close enough to share body heat. The familiar sound of the alarm clock being set for the next morning was the first real reminder she needed that she was back to the real world. That and the strong arms around her abdomen and the chest pressed against her back. She was definitely home.

**

Eight hours of solid sound sleep later…

She cursed at the bracing sound of the shrill tone the clock was making on the other side of the bed. She cursed working. She cursed being back home and most of all she cursed the lump next to her that refused to turn off the horrible noise.

"Danny." She called still half asleep.

"Go away."

"Danny!"

"I'm on vacation." He whined.

"Danny!"

"What?"

"Get out of bed, turn that damn thing off and go to work."

"Uungh." He moaned half hanging off the bed. "Why did you keep me up most of the night with your wicked wild ways?"

"Oh, no. You're not blaming me. It was totally you who rolled over in the middle of the night and your hand and arm landed across my body. I was just lying there, minding my own business."

"Oh, yeah." Good memories.

"Turn that off, get out of bed and go to work. Put some clothes on too, I don't want any phone calls."

He rolled to meet her face and he played with a stray strand of hair on her face. "Meet me for lunch."

"I can do that. My taste buds need to get retrained anyway. Now get out of here."

"Fine, fine." He rolled out of bed under a lot of duress. "You hear this baby girl, your mama's kicking me out. Help me here."

"Go. She can't here you, she's asleep."

**

Lindsay started her day shortly after Danny left for the lab. She wanted to see the baby's room. She took a quick peek the night before but not a good one. Over the phone, while she was gone, Danny explained what all he'd done to the room and updated her on small gifts that people had gotten here and there. But it was so much better than he described. A few new outfits were already nestled in drawers next to blankets and teeny socks and hats. The job he did was wonderful. It was perfect…she would have to thank him properly that night. She went to the boxes and bags that he set inside the door and opened them to put away the items that her family sent back with her.

By mid morning she was starving. Thoughts of pizza, pretzels, hot dogs and everything else the vendors had to offer made her mouth water. Dinner might have to be at their diner or the Thai place that she missed so much. Satisfied with the work she did, she left the apartment.

Lunch was the first step. A stop of school after she was done at the lab with Danny was in order to see her friends and some of her students. Maybe she'd call the Messers for dinner.

In the cab at a stop light, hunger hit her again. She put a hand to her stomach. The driver eyeballed her in the rearview mirror. "Ma'am, you alright?"

"Yeah, just hungry and this one is not happy about me not eating." Another twinge hit and it felt a little different. The hand moved on her body where the pain was this time. It was in a weird place. She couldn't remember what the books said about pains and when to believe them or dismiss them. Dates, time, schedules started going through her mind. She had a doctor's appointment in two days; they could talk about what she was feeling then.

The cab stopped in front of Police Plaza and dropped her off. Lindsay as desperate to find something to eat and her back was killing her. The need for food shifted to finding some place to sit down. Any couch on the 35th floor would do just fine. On the elevator the plans she made in her head started moving to other days. Her mental calendar opened again and everything she wanted to do that day was moved to the next. The way she was feeling, it was looking more and more less likely that she was going to make it anywhere but to bed this afternoon.

Leaving the elevator all she wanted to do was sit down and relieve some of the pain in her back. No one she knew was in sight. Everyone was out of the office. She eased herself down on the couch in Danny's office to wait. A little chill ran across her skin. Danny's lab coat was over one arm of the couch and she tunneled her arms through the sleeves to find warmth.

Then…the back of her thighs felt wet. She checked and she wasn't sitting on anything that she could feel. Maybe there was something in the pocket of Danny's lab coat…nope.

Her water broke.

Panic set in for a moment.

Stop.

Breathe.

Find Danny.

* * *

_Hmmm...Baby Messer is coming next. Here comes all the tears, screams, and happy times. Just wait._


	80. Chapter 80

_I have been trying to get this chapter up since late Friday afternoon and I kept getting errors. Here it is. In my neck of the woods, I am under about 7 inches of snow and ice. The world here has come to a stand still. Its a great day to stay in and read. I am thrilled about the continued response to this story. Over 100,000 hits and each day we get close to 800 reviews. It lets me know there are people still reading._

Finally it was quiet. It was a welcome peace. Most of the monitors that beeped or had alarms were silent and long gone. All their friends and their chattering were gone. They said their congratulations and goodnights. Mac was the last to leave only after rocking his new Goddaughter, yet to be named, for a long time. Lindsay was napping. The cycle of nursing every two hours was taking a lot out of her. It was dark outside and it was silent. The hour was late, or early depending on the schedule one kept. The streets outside the window were calm, never would the streets of the city quiet.

Mac handed the small bundle over to Danny almost an hour before and rather than place the precious life in the standard rolling basinet that the nursery provided, he snuggled her into his arms and stepped to the window. To the causal passerby, one might think he was studying something out in front of him, but instead the man was gently rocking back and forth and replaying the day in his head while his new daughter slept against him.

Lindsay told him the story earlier that day of how her water broke at the lab and Adam was the only choice for a ride. Danny laughed when she told him about Adam pulling up to her in the garage under the building in a mini cooper that was bright red. She described how she barely fit in the front seat and how offended he was when she called it a toy car. They were enjoying their time, sharing the story when another contraction hit. He rushed to her side and helped her through it. Once it passed, Lindsay backtracked and shared what it was like to tell Adam he was going to be the ambulance driver for the day.

Their busy day included visits from friends. Stella came and took Lindsay for a walk and she poured out her heart about the fears she had with the birth so near. Adam came back to the hospital because the bag Lindsay packed was left in his car, if you could call it that. Lindsay insisted that the two of them go down to the cafeteria for a bite while she tried to rest. Mac almost made it to the room. He was in the hospital on his way up. Danny thought he'd be hanging around all day since he took the day off, but something was going on with an old case.

The small bundle wiggled and stretched a bit. Danny moved from the window towards the bed thinking it was about time for his baby girl to eat. She shifted for a few more seconds and then was still again. Instead of the bed being his final destination, he eased over to the rocker and took a seat. He rested his daughter against his chest and leaned back. The natural rhythm of rocking took over.

More memories of the day flooded his brain. The phone on the bed side table never seemed to stop ringing. Their cell phones were even worse. His parents, her parents, friends, co-workers, they all wanted the latest news. The children in her classes even called during the afternoon hours to see what was going on. But leave it to Don Flack to call right as a contraction started. Lindsay howled at Danny to put the phone down. He was quick to end the call and pocket the object until he texted Mac about the birth getting closer.

Then the time came to get the doctor. They learned that when the nurse states that it was time to get the doctor to expect things to move quickly. The doc came into the birthing suite and sure enough it went quickly or it seemed to. There was screaming and pushing and crying and squeezing and that was mostly all on Danny's part. Then they got to work and he fell in love with Lindsay all over again. His heart swelled and was on the brink of bursting when the world stopped. Lindsay put all her effort to good use one more time and it happened.

It was better than any sound he'd ever heard. He and Lindsay squeezed each other the best they could. Their little girl cried and air refilled the new parents' lungs. Tears rolled down their cheeks. Danny couldn't get enough of Lindsay. He wanted to hold her and make sure she knew that he was going to love her for the rest of his life. He wanted one more moment with her to close the relationship they had as a married couple and started a new one as parents and family. Foreheads touched, eyes met and there was an understanding shared.

That was hours ago. Their friends came and went. Family would arrive the next day. In the few hours they had before the sun came up, Danny held his little girl against his heart and dozed in the rocker.

**

The camera was within reach when Lindsay stirred awake and pictures needed to be taken before either of the other two people in the room woke. Danny was asleep and there was a pink blanket starting to wiggle on his chest. She snapped a few pictures before starting to move to retrieve her daughter for the first feeding of the morning. She didn't get very far. Soreness and pain shot through her body. She was also still hooked up to an IV. The little orange button on the rail was pressed.

The nurse came in and Lindsay shushed her. "I don't want to wake him, but its feeding time. Can you bring her over?" With precision that only came with a move she'd done over and over before, the nurse removed her daughter with a feather's touch and brought her over to Lindsay. Stats were checked and Lindsay was left alone to feed her baby. When she was done and burped, a diaper needed to be changed. The small child was placed on her back on the bed in front of Lindsay and she went to work on the dirty diaper. She made no fuss about being laid out and Lindsay simply looked. Her ten fingers, her ten toes, nose, chin, eyes, mouth…Lindsay could not get enough. The skin was soft and she was so small.

"Good morning."

Lindsay's eyes darted to the door and then to Danny to make sure he was still sound asleep. Danny's parents peeked in and Lindsay pointed towards the chair where her husband was. They got the idea and carefully moved to the bed.

Mama Messer let out a silent squeal before picking her up and cradling baby girl Messer close. She whispered. "What's her name?"

"Lydia."

"No…Lucy." A slurred voice answered from the rocker.

"We haven't decided yet." She shifted her eyes to the sleepy man. "How'd you sleep?"

"Not bad." He exchanged hugs with his parents and took his daughter from them and kissed her forehead saying 'good morning.' "We really need to name you today." He handed her back to his mother and took a seat next to Lindsay much the same way he did the night before when their friends were visiting.

**

The nurse came mid-morning to take the baby back to the nursery for shift change. The doctor was in to check on his patient and suggested she started getting up and start moving; maybe even take a few steps. The effort it took to just hang her feet over the edge of the bed and not pass out at first was herculean. With time Danny coaxed her off the edge to a standing position with kisses. Her first steps were unsteady and short.

"What are we gonna do about a name?"

"I like Lydia."

"and I like Lucy."

"Okay, so…why do you like Lucy."

"No, I don't like Lucy. I love Lucy." He put on is best accent. "Lucy, I'm home. Now, why do you like Lydia?"

"I've always liked the name, always thought if I had a little girl, I'd name her Lydia."

"Wow…I only like Lucy because it was the closest girl name I could come up with that was close to a family name that I liked." Lindsay looked so confused as she took her steps more and more confidently. She had no idea what he was talking about. "Lucy came from Louie. Nothing else was considered after Lucy went through my mind."

Lindsay stopped the careful steps that she was taking and gave him the first full body hug in a day. She felt good in his arms, it was a little sore, but she felt so good. His ear caught the slight sniffle and pulled away. There were definite tears shining there in the corner of her eyes. "Let's walk down to the nursery and see what's taking Lucy so long. She should have been back by now."

_There is an end in sight. It still might be another bunch of chapters, but I can see the end. Don't be upset, I have Swan Song going and yet another story where the first chapter flowed out of the pen onto paper with very little crossing out and writing over._


	81. Chapter 81

This is abrupt, but it just feels like its time and for that I am so sorry. I thought I could continue the story. I had plans to continue the story, but this is just about as good a place to end it as any. Thank you for your beautiful words that fueled me to keep writing. Thank you for the encouragement and excitement for each new chapter.

If you are on author alert, more is coming...watch for it.

And so to close, I guess I could end it with they all lived happily ever after.


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